Grand Guignol anthology released in new Italian edition

A new anthology titled ‘I racconti del Grand Guignol’ has been released as part of the Alcatraz ‘Biblioteca di Lovecraft’ collection. The volume explores the short fiction associated with the famous Parisian Théâtre du Grand Guignol, which operated for sixty-six years and significantly influenced European horror imagery.

Curated by Jacopo Corazza and Gianluca Venditti, the book features rare texts, many of which are being published in Italy for the first time. This includes the story ‘All’alba’ by André de Lorde. The collection brings together prominent figures of French terror, such as Maurice Level, Maurice Renard, Tristan Bernard, and Jean Sartène.

The anthology highlights the intersection between literature and the stage, noting how the theater dramatized existing works by authors like Poe and Maupassant while also generating new narratives from its own scripts. The project draws inspiration from H. P. Lovecraft’s essay ‘Supernatural Horror in Literature’, specifically his praise of Maurice Level and the ‘conte cruel’ subgenre, which focuses on physical horrors and emotional torment rather than invisible supernatural entities.