Bobèche

Who is Bobèche?

Antoine Mandelot, better known as Bobèche, was a French theatre clown, similar to a Merry Andrew, under the First Empire and the Restoration.

He was the son of an upholsterer of the St. Antoine faubourg. He was closely associated with Auguste Guérin, better known as Galimafré. These two comedians were very well known, and performed at the Boulevard du Temple in Paris for twenty years, at a time when theatres, acrobat schools and all kinds of spectacles were very popular. The two men had each abandoned their workshops and took on these simple names when devoting themselves to their profession.

As a child, he performed sketches with Guérin, in his father's workshop. This led to them being recruited by a master street acrobat named Dromale. Mandelot become Bobèche, and Guérin become Galimafré.

Bobèche was a tall, thin and emaciated boy, who played the standard comedic role of Jocrisse. Performing on trestle stages on Boulevard du Temple, he wore a costume in the Basse Normandie style, consisting of yellow breeches, patterned stockings, a red jacket, straw-coloured wig, and a small horned hat adorned with a butterfly.