Marion De Lorme, 1829
Original title: Marion de Lorme
Inspired by Alfred de Vigny's Cinq-Mars, Hugo wrote Marion de Lorme in 1829. The aim was to portray Richelieu as a Romantic - the initial title was Un Duel sous Richelieu.
A reading of the play was held on 10 July in the presence of Alfred de Vigny, Alexander Dumas, Alfred de Musset, Honoré de Balzac, Sainte-Beuve and other friends. Four days later it was admitted by Théâtre-Française.
However, the censors considered the image of Louis XIII that Hugo put forth a threat to the monarchy and the play was banned. Hugo pleaded to Charles X, who read the suspicious fourth act and decided to support the ban. In compensation, Hugo was offered an annual grant of 2000 Francs but rejected it. Instead, he started writing on Hernani.
In 1831, the July Monarchy allowed what Charles X had banned and Hugo engaged in the rehearsals at Théâtre Porte-Saint-Martin. Marie Dorval played the role of Marion and forced Victor to make some changes in the end of the play. The play premiered in August without success. In time though, the character Didier became a role model for generations to come; his all-black clothing was the fashion for decades, as well as his liaison with a working-class girl.
Following the death of Hugo in 1885, Marion de Lorme was performed with Sarah Bernhardt in the leading role.
Notes:
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Marion de Lorme, c. 1613-1650, was a French courtesan, with liaisons high up in society - Cardinal Richelieu is believed to have been one of them. Her salon became one of the most brilliant centres of elegant Parisian society, but under the Fronde also of the opposition. When Mazarin sent to arrest her, she suddenly died. But there are also those who believe she lived until 1706 or even 1741. Alfred de Vigny popularized her name in his novel Cinq-Mars (also a liaison of hers) in 1826 and Giovanni Bottesini in the opera Marion Delorme (1862), based on Hugo's play.
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Marion de Lorme is said to have lived in the same building as Hugo at Place des Vosges.
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A movie adaptation of Marion de Lorme was made by Capellani in 1913. Read about it here.