L'Intruse
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L'Intruse (The Intruder) is a play by Belgian playwright Maurice Maeterlinck. It is the second play Maeterlinck wrote.
L'Intruse concerns man's conflict with preternatural forces, against which he is powerless.[1] The same theme was prevalent in Maeterlinck's first written play, La Princesse Maleine.
[edit] The Premiere
The first performance of L'Intruse occurred at Paul Fort's Theatre d'Art in Paris on May 20, 1891. The play was to appear at the end of a program benefitting Paul Verlaine and Paul Gauguin. If the program went on too long, then the play was to be removed.[2]
L'Intruse was a success and received praise from many critics.[3]
[edit] Synopsis
Set in the living room of a home, the grandfather, who is blind, waits with the father, the uncle, and the three daughters. They wait for the arrival of the priest and the sister. The ailing mother, who is in the next room, has given birth to a child, who sleeps in another adjoining room.
After hearing many noises, the grandfather hears two sets of footsteps upon the staircase. The maid appears, saying the door was open, so she shut it. The grandfather claims he heard someone enter the room behind the maid, but the others in the room say she was alone. The clock strikes midnight, the baby commences screaming, and the Sister of Charity appears, announcing the death of the mother.
[edit] References
| The works of Maurice Maeterlinck | |
|---|---|
| Plays | Princesse Maleine | The Intruder | The Blind | The Seven Princesses | Pelleas and Melisande | Alladine and Palomides | Interior |The Death of Tintagiles | Aglavaine and Sélysette | Ariane and Bluebeard | Sister Beatrice | Monna Vanna | Joyzelle | The Blue Bird | Mary Magdelene | The Miracle of St. Anthony | The Mayor of Stilmonde | The Betrothal | The Cloud That Lifted | The Power of the Dead | Berniquel | Marie-Victoire | Joan of Arc | Father Setubal | The Three Justiciaries | The Last Judgment |
| Poems | Hothouses | Twelve Songs |
| Short Stories | The Massacre of the Innocents | Onirology |
| Ballet | The Dance of the Stars |
| Essays, Prose | The Treasure of the Humble | Wisdom and Destiny | The Life of the Bee | The Intelligence of Flowers | The Life of the Termite | Blue Bubbles |
