Charles Dickens (1812-1870), founder of the social novel and a significant representative of literary realism, remains one of the most read authors in Europe today. "Grimaldi" is one of his earliest stories. It is based on the biography of the pantomime artist Joseph Grimaldi (1779-1837). With great attention to detail, Dickens describes the tumultuous life of one of the greatest entertainers of modern times and simultaneously provides an extremely authentic insight into the history of London's stages. Although he did not write the text alone and was still at the very beginning of his career, "Grimaldi" already contains many of the themes and stylistic characteristics that would later define Dickens' work.