Cyrano de Bergerac
Cyrano de Bergerac
- Author
- Edmond Rostand
- Year
- 1897
- Country
- France
- Copyright
- First staged 1897; Rostand died in 1918. The original is public domain; translation rights vary, so no excerpt is shown.
A poet-swordsman ashamed of his huge nose lends his words to a handsome, tongue-tied young man so both can love the same woman.
Why it is a classic
The prototype of love by proxy. It folds a triangle into two men acting as one, and the balcony scene and the final falling leaves are still homaged directly.
Structure breakdown
- 01Act 1 · The theatre
Cyrano drives an actor off stage and duels a man who mocked his nose while composing a ballade. Roxane asks to meet him; he dares to hope.
- 02Act 2 · The promise
Roxane confesses she loves Christian and asks Cyrano to protect him. Cyrano agrees to write the tongue-tied Christian's letters and lines.
- 03Act 3 · The balcony
In the dark Cyrano speaks for Christian; moved, Roxane marries Christian. Both men are sent to the front at once.
- 04Act 4 · The siege
Cyrano risks his life daily to send letters. Roxane arrives saying she loves his soul; Christian understands the truth and is killed.
- 05Act 5 · The leaves
Fifteen years later, a convent. Mortally wounded, Cyrano recites the last letter from memory in the dark, and Roxane finally knows.
What to steal for your own script
- Fold two corners of a triangle into one person and the relationship becomes new.
- Withhold the confession to the end and replace it with a scene of being found out.
- Let the hero joke about his own flaw in the first scene; the audience takes his side at once.
Original excerpt
No excerpt is shown because translation rights may apply. Read the original at the archives below.