Le capitaine Fracasse

The young Baron de Sigognac lives in poverty in a crumbling castle in Gascony, until a company of travelling actors stops there for a night. He joins them on the road, takes the stage name Captain Fracasse, and falls in love with one of the actresses. This book uses the racial and other slurs of its period as written; the Book Guide explains these words where they occur.

Summary written with Claude Opus 5.5.