Sarah Bernhardt adopts the pose of a pensive Lorenzo the Magnificent (1449-1492), the most powerful of the Medicis, in this play by Alfred de Musset. In the drama, Lorenzaccio struggles to save Florence, which had grown rich during his reign, from the grip of a power-hungry conqueror. Mucha represents this tyranny by a dragon menacing the city coat of arms (top left); Lorenzo has closed the book he was reading to ponder his course of action. Bernhardt adapted this 1863 play for herself, and the new version, represented by this poster, opened December 3, 1896. "Never afraid to tackle a male role, Bernhardt made Lorenzaccio into one of the classic roles of her repertoire” (Lendl/Paris, p. 18). This is the smaller format.
Imp. F. Champenois, Paris
literature: Rennert/Weill, 20, Var. 2; Lendl/Prague, p. 47 (var); DFP-II, 626; Maitres, 144; Mucha/Art Nouveau, 7 (var); PAI-XCIII, 308
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