TheatermuseetVedChristiansborg_25aar

S U M M A R Y Ch ristian sb o rg Castle was b u rn e d down twice, b u t the w ing in which the C o u rt T h eatre is situated bo th times escaped the flames. It was built in 1742, and, in 1766, on the model of Ver- sailles, the T h eatre was arra ng ed by N . H . Jard in , the F rench architect. Ch ristian V II (1749—1808), K ing of D e nm a rk and No rw a y , called in a F rench tro up e on whom he conferred the title of »H is M a je sty ’s o rd in ary actors, for the o rn am e n t and h o n o u r of the Court«. G en erou sly suppo rted by the King, the troup e gave performances till A p ril 1773, and its most diver- sified reperto ry was published in 14 volumes u n d e r the title of »Thé åtre Royal de D annemarc« . Th e actors belonged to the personal circle of the King, and M on sieu r la Tour, »jeun e p re ­ mier« of the troupe, p romp ted the king, when, in 1768, he performed, on the C o u rt Theatre, the character of Su ltan Oros- ma n in V o ltaire’s trag edy of »Zaire«, togeth er w ith some fa- vourites as fellow-players. A t the same time the C o u rt T h eatre was u sed for »Bals masqués parés en domino«, a n d at such a festival Caroline Math ilde (a sister of King Geo rg e III) , the k ing ’s English-born consort, danced, for the last time, with h e r lover, the M in ister af State, C o u n t Struensee d u rin g the n igh t of J a n u a ry 16th 1772, preceding his imp risonmen t and sub sequ en t execution and h er banishment. A silk tapestried room, still extant, is said, according to tradition, to have been

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