SOURCE: Knapp, Bettina L. Introduction to French Theater: 1918-1939, pp. 1-14. London: Macmillan, 1985.

In the following essay, Knapp provides a brief history of French playwrights and directors during the years between the two world wars.

11 November 1918. The Armistice. The end of World War I. A spirit of intense joy swept over France. Jazz bands howled out their brash sounds and rhythmic beats; dancing became popular once again; parades filled the streets. Theatre flourished. Entertainment and excitement were the rule of the day. A counterpoise, certainly, to the harsh facts of war: one and a half million Frenchmen had died; countless had suffered in the trenches; still more had been permanently disabled, deprived of a normal future.

After the Armistice, Paris remained a composite of opposites. Its theatres seemed to satisfy the requirements of all classes, all types, all tastes. The classical and historical repertoire of the state subsidised...