[Memoirs Of The Court Of Marie Antoinette Queen Of France by Madame Campan]@TWC D-Link bookMemoirs Of The Court Of Marie Antoinette Queen Of France CHAPTER XII 12/16
The Queen said nothing to him about the matter.
Shortly, afterwards permission to perform this play was at length obtained.
The Queen thought the people of Paris would be finely tricked when they saw merely an ill-conceived piece, devoid of interest, as it must appear when deprived of its Satire. ["The King," says Grimm, "made sure that the public would judge unfavourably of the work." He said to the Marquis de Montesquiou, who was going to see the first representation, 'Well, what do you augur of its success ?'--'Sire, I hope the piece will fail.'-- 'And so do I,' replied the King. "There is something still more ridiculous than my piece," said Beaumarchais himself; "that is, its success." Mademoiselle Arnould foresaw it the first day, and exclaimed, "It is a production that will fail fifty nights successively." There was as crowded an audience on the seventy-second night as on the first.
The following is extracted from Grimm's 'Correspondence.' "Answer of M.de Beaumarchais to -- ---, who requested the use of his private box for some ladies desirous of seeing 'Figaro' without being themselves seen. "I have no respect for women who indulge themselves in seeing any play which they think indecorous, provided they can do so in secret.
I lend myself to no such acts.
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