About the work
Historical drama in five acts and an epilogue by Alfred de Musset, written in 1834 and published as a closet drama within the collection "Un spectacle dans un fauteuil." Since Musset had not written it for an actual stage, the play was not performed until 62 years later, on 3 December 1896, at the Théâtre de la Renaissance in Paris, in a stage adaptation by Armand d'Artois starring Sarah Bernhardt in the title role, with costumes by Alphonse Mucha.
Plot
In Medici Florence, the dissolute, seemingly debauched Lorenzo de' Medici, known as Lorenzaccio, has long been planning to assassinate his cousin, Duke Alessandro. To win the duke's trust, he has made himself an accomplice in his excesses, sacrificing his own reputation in the process. When Lorenzaccio finally kills the duke, the hoped-for political revolution fails to materialise — Florence simply falls to a new tyrant.
Cultural significance
"Lorenzaccio" is regarded as one of the major dramas of French Romanticism and Musset's answer to the Hamlet-like theme of resolve and hesitation. Its belated premiere, with Sarah Bernhardt in the breeches role of Lorenzo, finally proved the play's viability on stage and continues to shape its reception to this day.