Adrienne Lecouvreur: The Actress and the Age, A Biography

240 pp. Adrienne Lecouvreur, (born April 5, 1692, Damery, Fr. - died March 20, 1730, Paris), leading French actress whose life inspired a tragic drama a century after her death. At the age of 14 she participated in an amateur performance of Pierre Corneille's Polyeucte. She then received instruction in acting from the actor-manager Paul Legrand and as a professional actress was first seen on the stage at Lille. On May 14, 1717, she made her debut at the Comedie-Francaise in Prosper Jolyot Crebillon's Electre. To this role, to the Monime in Jean Racine's Mithridate, and to the Angelique in Moliere's George Dandin, she brought a naturalness and simplicity not characteristic of the style of acting then current; this factor, combined with her beauty and charm, made her extraordinarily popular.--Britannica