Théagène et Chariclée

Théagène et Chariclée, sometimes spelled Téagène et Cariclée, is a lyric tragedy in five acts and a prologue with music by Desmarets and a libretto by Duché de Vancy. It was based upon Heliodorus’s romance of the same title, but its librettist took liberties with the original tale to achieve spectacular effects for the stage. Alexandre Hardy had dramatized this ancient novel of adventure at the beginning of the seventeenth century, and Mlle de Scudéry had helped make it better known by…