Camille

by Neil Bartlett, Alexandre Dumas fils

"All I ever wanted was a man who wouldn't ask me questions"

Across the foyer of a crowded theatre, a handsome young man catches sight of the most expensive prostitute in town. When they meet, a mutual obsession is ignited - one that tears both their worlds apart.

Set amidst the glittering splendours and miseries of 19th century Paris, Camille has scandalised and fascinated audiences and theatres, cinemas and opera houses for over a hundred and fifty years. Neil Bartlett's new version returns to the original novel for its shockingly frank and emotional portrayal of a woman who can afford anything - except to fall in love.

Camille opened at the Lyric Hammersmith on 6th March 2003.

98 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 6, 2003

About the author

Born in 1958, Neil Bartlett has spent twenty-five years at the cutting edge of British gay culture. His ground-breaking study of Oscar Wilde, Who Was That Man? paved the way for a queer re-imagining of history ; his first novel, Ready To Catch Him Should He Fall, was voted Capital Gay Book of The Year; his second, Mr Clive and Mr Page, was nominated for the Whitbread Prize. Both have since been translated into five European languages. Listing him as one of the country's fifty most significant gay cultural figures, the Independent said "Brilliant,beautiful, mischievous; few men can match Bartlett for the breadth of his exploration of gay sensibility".

He also works as a director, and in 2000 was awarded an OBE for services to the theatre. He founded his first theatre company in 1982 and is now an "independent theatre-maker and freelance director", continuing to write novels and work as an activist for gay rights.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook, so forgive the misspellings of names. This was heartbreaking. It starts with an estate sale of the items of one of the most notorious mistresses in all Paris. The narrator, who only knew of her but did not know her shows up to the estate sale and then discovers who the items belong to. He buys a book, and then a few days later the man who originally gave her the book shows up at the narrators house asking for hit back. The narrator and the man (Armand) become friends and Armand tells him all about his affair with Margarete. Armand and Margarete had a torrid love affair. He was a regular guy, she was the the most renowned mistress in Paris. He could not afford her, but they loved each other so much that she gave up the glitz, moved to a tiny town and lived happily. That is until his father showed up and asked her to leave him for the sake of his sister and her upcoming marriage. So, Margarete, who has been sickly the entire time they have known each other, does. She leaves him and the country to return to the glitz of the city where her illness gets worse. On her death bed she writes a series of letters to Armand explaining why she left him, that she really did love him, and her thoughts as she lay dying. He returns too late to see her before she dies. He returns home to his father, after telling his story and getting Margarete moved from a temporary grave to a permanent one. He was extremely jealous during their time together, until they moved to the country. But, they did genuinely love each other. However, her love for him required that she leave him, for the sake of his family. In the end, she died alone and heartbroken. And he did not know the truth until it was too late.