Early life and career beginnings
If you want something done right, do it yourself. Charles-Guillaume Étienne was a 19th-century French playwright. Biography He was born in Chamouilley, Haute-Marne. He held various municipal offices under the Revolution and came in 1793 to Paris, where he produced his first opera, Le Rêve, in 1799, in collaboration with Antoine-Frédéric Gresnick. Although Étienne continued to write for the Paris theatres for twenty years from that date, he is remembered chiefly as the author of one comedy, which excited considerable controversy. Les Deux Gendres was represented at the Théâtre Français on 11 August 1810, and procured for its author a seat in the Académie française. A rumour was put in circulation that Étienne had drawn largely on a manuscript play in the imperial library, entitled Conaxa, ou les gendres dupes.
The Les Deux Gendres controversy and later plays
His rivals were not slow to take up the charge of plagiarism, to which Étienne replied that the story was an old one it existed in an old French fabliaus and had already been treated by Alexis Piron in Les Fils ingrats. He was, however, driven later to make admissions which at least showed a certain lack of candour. The bitterness of the attacks made on him was no doubt in part due to his position as editor-in-chief of the official Journal de l'Empire. His next play, L'Intrigante 1812, hardly maintained the high level of Les Deux Gendres; the patriotic opera L'Oriflamme and his lyric masterpiece Joconde date from 1814. Caricature by Honoré Daumier, 1833 Étienne had been secretary to Hugues-Bernard Maret, Duc de Bassano, and in this capacity had accompanied Napoleon throughout his campaigns in Italy, Germany, Austria and Poland.
Political activity and later life
During these journeys he produced one of his best pieces, Brueys et Palaprat 1807. During the Restoration Étienne was an active member of the opposition. He was seven times returned as deputy for the département of Meuse, and was in full sympathy with the revolution of 1830, but the reforms actually carried out did not fulfil his expectations, and he gradually retired from public life. Among his other plays may be noted: Les Deux Mères, Le Pacha de Suresnes, and La Petite Ecole des pres, all produced in 1802, in collaboration with his friend Charles Gaugiran de Nanteuil 1778–1830. With Alphonse Dieudonné Martainville 1779–1830 he wrote an Histoire du Théâtre Français 5 vols, 1802 during the revolutionary period. Étienne was a bitter opponent of the romanticists, one of whom, Alfred de Vigny, was his successor and panegyrist in the Academy.
Legacy and death
He was an Officer in the Legion of Honour, and was buried in the Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris. In Bruis et Palaprat, Étienne penned the phrase "On n'est jamais servi si bien que par soi-même", which has widely been translated as "If you want something done right, do it yourself", although the literal translation is "One is never served so well as by oneself".
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Take the IQ test →Detailed bibliography of works
Works Theatre 1799: Le Rêve, opéra comique in 1 act and in prose, lyrics by citizen Étienne, music by citizen Gresnich, Paris, Opéra-Comique, 8 pluviôse an VII 1800: Rembrandt ou la Vente après décès, vaudeville anecdotique in 1 act, by citizens Étienne, Morel, Servière and Moras, Théâtre des Troubadours, 26 fructidor an VIII 1800: Le Chaudronnier, Homme d'État, comedy in three acts and in prose, Théâtre de l'Ambigu-Comique, 1er thermidor an VIII 1800: La Lettre sans adresse, comedy in 1 act and in prose, mingled with vaudevilles...
by citizens Étienne and Moras, Théâtre des Troubadours, 26 vendémiaire an IX 1800: L'Apollon du Belvédere ou l'Oracle, folie-vaudeville impromptue in 1 act, by citizens Étienne, Moras and Gaugiran-Nanteuil, Théâtre des Troubadours, 29, 30 brumaire, 1er, 2 and 3 frimaire an IX 1801: Pont-de-Veyle ou le Bonnet de docteur, comédie en vaudeville in 1 act, by citizens Gosse and Étienne, Théâtre des Variétés, 6 vendémiaire an X 1801: Désirée ou la Paix du village, allegory in 1 act, in vaudevilles, by citizens Gaugiran-Nanteuil, Moras and Étienne, Théâtre Favart, 5 germinal an IX 1801: Le Grand Deuil , opéra bouffon, lyrics by citizens J.-B. Vial eand C.-G. Étienne, music by citizen H. Berton, Opéra-comique, 1er pluviôse an IX 1802: Le Pacha de Suresnes ou l'Amitié des femmes, comédie-anecdote in 1 act and in prose, by citizens C.-G.
Étienne and Gaugiran-Nanteuil, Théâtre Louvois, 11 prairial an X La Petite École des pères, comedy in 1 act and in prose, by C.-G. Étienne and Gaugiran-Nanteuil, Théâtre Louvois, 8 nivôse an XI 1803: Le Pauvre Riche ou la Séparation de biens, comedy in three acts and in prose written in society with Mr. Nanteuil, Théâtre Louvois, en vendémiaire an XII 1803: Les Maris en bonne fortune, comedy in 3 acts, Théâtre Louvois, 9 germinal an XI 1804: La Jeune Femme en colère, comedy in 1 act and in prose, Théâtre de l'Impératrice, 28 vendémiaire an XIII 1804: Isabelle de Portugal ou l'Héritage, historical comedy in 1 act, in prose, by MMs.
Étienne and Gaugiran-Nanteuil, Théâtre de l'Impératrice, 27 November 1804: Une heure de mariage , comedy in one act and in prose mingled with ariettes, music by Nicolas Dalayrac, created at the Opéra-Comique théâtre Feydeau, 29 ventôse an XII 20 March 1805: Gulistan ou le Hulla de Samarcande , comedy in three acts and in prose mingled with ariettes, with Poisson de La Chabeaussière after the One Thousand and One Nights, music by Nicolas Dalayrac, creatred at the Opéra-Comique Théâtre Feydeau, 8 vendémiaire an XIV 30 September 1806: Le Nouveau Réveil d'Épiménide, comédie épisodique in 1 act, in prose, by MM. Étienne and Gaugiran-Nanteuil, Théâtre de l'Impératrice, 5 February 1807: Le Carnaval de Beaugency ou Mascarade sur mascarade, comedy in 1 act, in prose, by MM.
Étienne and Gaugiran-Nanteuil, Théâtre de l'Impératrice, 2 February 1807: Bruis et Palaprat, comedy in 1 act and in verse, Théâtre-Français, 28 November 1808: Un jour à Paris ou la Leçon singulière , opéra comique in 3 acts, mingled with music, lyrics by M. Étienne, music by M. Nicolas Isouard, Opéra-comique, 24 May 1810: Cendrillon , opéra-féerie in 3 acts and in prose, lyrics by M. Étienne, music by Nicolas Isouard, Opéra-comique, 22 February 1810: Les Deux Gendres, comedy in 5 acts and in verse, Théâtre-Français, 11 August 1812: Le Chômeur naïf, comedy in 1 act and in prose, Théâtre-Français, 12 May. 1813: L'Intrigante ou l'École des familles, comedy in 5 acts and in verse, Théâtre-Français, 6 March 1814: L'Oriflamme, opera in 1 act, lyrics by C.-G.
Étienne and Baour-Lormian, music by Méhul, Paer, Breton and Kreutzer, Académie impériale de musique, 1 February 1814: Joconde ou les Coureurs d'aventures , comedy in 3 acts, mingled with singing, by M. Étienne, music by Nicolo Nicolas Isouard, Théâtre de l'opéra-comique, 28 February 1814: Jeannot et Colin , comedy in 3 acts, mingled with songs, by M. Étienne, music by Nicolo, Théâtre de l'opéra-comique, 17 October 1815: Racine et Cavois, comedy in 3 acts and in verse, Théâtre-Français, 26 April 1816: Le Rossignol, opéra comique in 1 act, lyrics by C.-G. Étienne, music by Lebrun, Académie royale de musique, 23 April 1816: L'Une pour l'autre , opéra comique in 3 acts, by M. Étienne, music by M. Nicolo, Opéra-comique, 11 May 1818: Zéloïde ou les Fleurs enchantées, opera in 2 acts, lyrics by C.-G.
Étienne, music by Lebrun, Académie royale de musique, 19 January 1821: Les Plaideurs sans procès, comedy in 3 acts and in verse, Théâtre-Français, 29 October 1822: Aladin ou la Lampe merveilleuse, opéra-féerie in 5 acts, Académie royale de musique, 6 February music by Nicolo and Benincori 1825: Le Bénéficiaire, comedy in 5 acts and 1 vaudeville, by MM. Théaulon and Étienne, Théâtre des Variétés, 26 April 1826: Le Chiffonnier ou le Philosophe nocturn e, comédie en vaudeville in 5 acts and in 1 day, by MM. Théaulon et Étienne, Théâtre des Variétés, 6 January 1827: Une nuit de Gustave Wasa ou le Batelier suédois, opéra comique in 2 acts, lyrics by J.-M.-C. Leber and C.-G. Étienne, Opéra-comique, 29 September 1830: Arwed ou les Représailles, épisode de la guerre d'Amérique, drama in 2 acts, mingled with couplets, by MM.
Étienne, Varin and Desvergers, Théâtre du Vaudeville, 31 March Varia 1802: Histoire du Théâtre français depuis le commencement de la Révolution jusqu'à la réunion générale by C. G. Étienne and Alphonse Martainville 2 volumes 1820: Lettres sur Paris ou Correspondance pour servir à l'histoire de l'établissement du gouvernement représentatif en France 2 volumes 1825: Mémoires de François Molé, preceded by a notice about this actor, by M. Étienne. Le Comédien, by M. Remond de Sainte Albine 1846–1853: Œuvres 5 volumes
Achievements
- Made significant contributions to Literature
- Influenced contemporary and future thinkers
- Left lasting legacy in their field
