Louis Arsene Delaunay

Who was Louis Arsene Delaunay?

Louis Arsène Delaunay, French actor, was born in Paris, the son of a wine-seller. He studied at the Conservatoire, and made his first formal appearance on the stage in 1845, in Molière's Tartuffe at the Odon.

After three years at this house he made his debut at the Comédie-Française as Dorante in Corneilles Le Menteur, and began a long and brilliant career in young lover parts. He continued to act as jeune premier until he was sixty, his grace, marvellous diction and passion enchanting his audiences. It was especially in the plays of Alfred de Musset that his gifts found their happiest expression. In the thirty-seven years during which he was a member of the Comédie-Française, Delaunay took or created nearly two hundred parts. He retired in 1887, having been made a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur in 1883.