Princess Maleine

Princess Maleine is a play by the Belgian playwright Maurice Maeterlinck and was his first work for the stage. It draws on the Brothers Grimm tale "Maid Maleen" and was first published in 1889 in serial form in La Société Nouvelle, a Brussels periodical, before appearing as a book that December, financed by a modest sum from his mother.

The action takes place in an vague time and setting, with kings, princes and dark forests that recall fairy tales. Maleine, betrothed to Prince Hjalmar, sees a misunderstanding between the two kingdoms lead to a war that destroys her entire family. Escaping in disguise, she becomes a servant in Hjalmar's household, where she learns that the prince is to marry Uglyane, daughter of the enigmatic Queen Anne, who has seduced the aging king. The ending is tragic and chaotic, and the characters never manage to impose their will on events.

The play attracted the attention of Stéphane Mallarmé, and in 1890 Octave Mirbeau published a warm review of it in Le Figaro. Despite the interest of French theatre directors, Maeterlinck withdrew his permission for a staging, so the work did not reach professional French stages until 1962, although it was performed by puppet companies shortly after publication.