School of passions

In 1686, Madame de Maintenon founded the Maison royale de Saint-Cyr: a school reserved for poor young girls from noble families. At this school, the arts were given pride of place, starting with music and theatre. The finest artists of the time were summoned to teach the young ladies, starting with the great Racine, whose tragedies had enjoyed immense success. One must imagine this new theatre-school: these young hearts would have to learn the intricacies of the human soul, social interactions, the art of seduction (within a very moral framework), but also the pleasure of performing on stage. Not only acting, but also singing to the sound of magnificent harmonies, composed by Marc-Antoine Charpentier and Jean-Baptiste Lully, to express all the passions of the soul.