coup de théâtre

American  

[kood^uhtey-ah-tr^uh] / kudəteɪˈɑ trə /

noun

French.

coups de théâtre plural

1. a surprising or unexpected turn of events in a play.

2. a sensational and unexpected turn in the plot of a drama.

3. any theatrical trick intended to have a sensational effect.

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coup de théâtre British  

/ ku də teɑtrə /

noun

1. a dramatic turn of events, esp in a play

2. a sensational device of stagecraft

3. a stage success

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• coups de théâtre
  plural

Etymology

Origin of coup de théâtre

literally: stroke of the theatre

Example Sentences

In the final coup de théâtre, a black-and-white environment slowly transforms into a brilliantly green, leafy tree as Ana’s choked syllables become the “I” that her father forbade her to use.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 12, 2026

“Into the Woods” occasioned Peters’ best work, including a duet with Salonga of “Children Will Listen” and a coup de théâtre involving Little Red Riding Hood’s costume.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 14, 2025

He out-Brecht-ed Brecht with Peter Weiss’s “Marat/Sade” for the RSC in the 1960s, a shattering coup de théâtre with Glenda Jackson as an asylum inmate and Patrick Magee as the Marquis de Sade.

From Washington Post • Jul. 3, 2022

You could almost forgive that at “O welche Lust,” the famous prisoners’ chorus, still the emotional high point of the production and now a coup de théâtre.

From New York Times • Feb. 14, 2022

But at this juncture supervened the coup de théâtre, as M. Ollivier styles it, which opens the second act of the drama.

From Studies in Literature and History by Miller, John O.