Ferdinand Raimund was born in Mariahilf, in outer Vienna, on 1st June 1790. An ambitious self-educated man, he began his career as an actor, appearing on many European stages. Even after he became famous as a playwright he often acted roles in his own plays. He began writing casually, revising scripts, until encouraged by friends to write his own plays. Raimund contributed eight well-known comedies to the Viennese Popular Theater (Wiener Volkstheater). Its best-known representatives are Raimund and his younger rival, the more satirical and realistic Johann Nepomuk Nestroy (1801-1862). The fanciful comedies of Raimund and Nestroy show influences of folk theater, Italian
commedia dell'arte, and the Baroque court opera. Raimund's plays entertain with humour, magic and fairy-tale elements,…
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Citation: Saur, Pamela S.. "Ferdinand Raimund". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 25 July 2005 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5948, accessed 19 April 2024.]
