287 - COURTELINE (Georges Moineaux, known as), 1858–1929.

COURTELINE (Georges Moineaux, known as), 1858–1929. Autograph letter signed “G. Courteline,” Paris, undated [March 1909], 4 pp., in-8, to Pierre Wolff. Their play is doing quite well, and he gives P. Wolff the box office figures for the matinee and evening performances: “[…] which means that Guitry will come out of this venture without losing a penny […] the newspapers aren’t saying a word about Bataille’s play, which is supposed to follow ours […] I saw Gémier yesterday and finalized the deal with him for the 36-city tour you know about […] “Another project is under consideration, but ‘[…]’ I don’t know,” he writes to me, “whether I’ll stage your play this season or next […] It will depend on the success of the play by Tristan Bernard that I’m currently performing and which seems set to run for quite some time […]” An interesting letter about the aftermath of the premiere of *La Cruche*, Courteline’s final play, written in collaboration with Pierre Wolff. Premiered on February 27, 1909, at the Théâtre de la Renaissance, “La Cruche, or I’ve Had Enough of Margot” notably featured Lucien Guitry—then the theater’s director—in the role of Lavernié. Here, Courteline provides his collaborator with a thorough assessment of the play’s run, while expressing concern about the upcoming premiere of Henry Bataille’s *Le Scandale*, which was indeed scheduled to follow their play at the Théâtre de la Renaissance on the following March 30. Above all, Courteline announces that he has arranged with Firmin Gémier for a provincial tour of the play almost immediately after its Paris premiere. Finally, he mentions another joint theatrical project, the premiere of which remains contingent on the success of a play by Tristan Bernard currently running.