André GIDE writes to Paul CLAUDEL of his enthusiasm for "Protée".

Andre Gide (1869.1951).

Autograph letter signed to Paul Claudel.

Two pages in-8° on Hôtel de Flandre letterhead.

[Bruges] November 24, 1913.

“Gallimard had just received Protée… I could not resist my impatient desire and I put the manuscript in my suitcase. »

Gide is enthusiastic about Claudel's play.

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“Dear friend, I was called to Bruges before I could send Whitman to you. Excuse me. I'm going back to Paris tomorrow. You will receive the book in a few days. But that’s not why I’m writing to you. Gallimard had just received Protée… I could not resist my impatient desire and I put the manuscript in my suitcase. There's nowhere better than in a train car to read... I'm delighted, amazed. Your Proteus is prodigious. We must bring this into play, dear friend. What a wonderful opportunity this will give your friends to applaud you and fight a little for you!

If I dared to give advice... don't let it appear first in a book or in a magazine - but immediately on the stage . Le Vieux Colombier would play this, perhaps a little worse than you would be played in Germany, but certainly better than you would be played anywhere else in Paris. I don't doubt that Copeau isn't as enthusiastic as I am – although that's saying something! – I would like to see this happen straight away. Proteus will rejuvenate us all. I can already hear the rumors in the room, the whistles and the long ovation... What an absurd letter I am writing to you! but it does me good to write it to you – if I waited until tomorrow, I could only write to you at length. Good your André Gide. »

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The play Protée was written by Paul Claudel in 1913, in Germany, while he held the post of consul general in Frankfurt. Claudel had asked Darius Milhaud to create music for the stage performance. Despite Gide's enthusiasm, and the attempts of several directors, the play was not performed during Paul Claudel's lifetime. The first theatrical performance did not take place until February 25, 1955 (two days after the creator's death) at the Comédie de Paris.