Mircea Constantin Demetriade (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈmirt͡ʃe̯a
konstanˈtin demetriˈade]; also rendered as Demetriad, Dimitriade,
Dimitriadi, or Demitriadi; September 2, 1861 â€" September 11, 1914)
was a Romanian poet, playwright and actor, one of the earliest
animators of the local Symbolist movement. Born in Oltenia to a
theatrical family, he largely gave up on a similar career to become a
bohemian writer. He associated with, and was inspired by, Alexandru
Macedonski, building on early romantic influences at Literatorul
magazine. Later, he incorporated borrowings from Charles Baudelaire
and Arthur Rimbaud, two of the authors Demetriade would translate into
Romanian.Demetriade's work, which mainly consists of lyric poetry and
verse drama with fantasy elements, was often included in the National
Theater Bucharest programs; however, critics and historians have
dismissed it as a rather minor contribution to Romanian literature. In
addition to pioneering Symbolism, Demetriade affiliated with the
socialist circle of Constantin Dobrogeanu-Gherea and Constantin Mille,
and was a local promoter of Freemasonry. During the 1880s, he
cultivated the friendships of writers Vasile Alecsandri and Bonifaciu
Florescu, editing Analele Literare, a magazine which mixed Symbolist
activism and literary scholarship. He is additionally remembered for
helping to found the society of writers at Kübler Coffeehouse circle,
and for being one of the regulars at Macedonski's literary
salon.Demetriade was born in Ocnele Mari, Vâlcea County, or,
according to other documents, in Craiova (yet another account,
probably erroneous, has Bucharest). The family was of Greek origin,
its original surname being reported as Dimitriadis, then Romanianized
as Demetriade or Demetriad. The poet's father was a Greek immigrant
and celebrated actor, Constantin "Costache" Dimitriade. His wife,
Mircea's mother, was Luxița (née Saragea), who descended from the
old boyar nobility of Oltenia. Costache's other children, Aristide
Demetriade and Aristizza Romanescu, also became actors. Demeteriade
was the uncle of Eraclie Sterian, the sexologist and playwright, and
the great-uncle of poet-sociologist Paul Sterian.Mircea left high
school early and then took declamation courses at the Bucharest
Conservatory. In 1880, he appeared alongside his sister and (on his
retiring performance) his father, in a production for the National
Theater Bucharest; the chosen play was Victor Séjour's "Outlaw of the
Adriatic", and he had the title role. Having registered some success
in comedy, with a leading role in Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu's Trei
crai, he became a pledgee of the National Theater the following year.
konstanˈtin demetriˈade]; also rendered as Demetriad, Dimitriade,
Dimitriadi, or Demitriadi; September 2, 1861 â€" September 11, 1914)
was a Romanian poet, playwright and actor, one of the earliest
animators of the local Symbolist movement. Born in Oltenia to a
theatrical family, he largely gave up on a similar career to become a
bohemian writer. He associated with, and was inspired by, Alexandru
Macedonski, building on early romantic influences at Literatorul
magazine. Later, he incorporated borrowings from Charles Baudelaire
and Arthur Rimbaud, two of the authors Demetriade would translate into
Romanian.Demetriade's work, which mainly consists of lyric poetry and
verse drama with fantasy elements, was often included in the National
Theater Bucharest programs; however, critics and historians have
dismissed it as a rather minor contribution to Romanian literature. In
addition to pioneering Symbolism, Demetriade affiliated with the
socialist circle of Constantin Dobrogeanu-Gherea and Constantin Mille,
and was a local promoter of Freemasonry. During the 1880s, he
cultivated the friendships of writers Vasile Alecsandri and Bonifaciu
Florescu, editing Analele Literare, a magazine which mixed Symbolist
activism and literary scholarship. He is additionally remembered for
helping to found the society of writers at Kübler Coffeehouse circle,
and for being one of the regulars at Macedonski's literary
salon.Demetriade was born in Ocnele Mari, Vâlcea County, or,
according to other documents, in Craiova (yet another account,
probably erroneous, has Bucharest). The family was of Greek origin,
its original surname being reported as Dimitriadis, then Romanianized
as Demetriade or Demetriad. The poet's father was a Greek immigrant
and celebrated actor, Constantin "Costache" Dimitriade. His wife,
Mircea's mother, was Luxița (née Saragea), who descended from the
old boyar nobility of Oltenia. Costache's other children, Aristide
Demetriade and Aristizza Romanescu, also became actors. Demeteriade
was the uncle of Eraclie Sterian, the sexologist and playwright, and
the great-uncle of poet-sociologist Paul Sterian.Mircea left high
school early and then took declamation courses at the Bucharest
Conservatory. In 1880, he appeared alongside his sister and (on his
retiring performance) his father, in a production for the National
Theater Bucharest; the chosen play was Victor Séjour's "Outlaw of the
Adriatic", and he had the title role. Having registered some success
in comedy, with a leading role in Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu's Trei
crai, he became a pledgee of the National Theater the following year.
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