The Cloven Foot · Character

La Chicot

A celebrated dancer whose bold face smiles from every London wall, La Chicot lives for applause and caprice, heedless of the danger her husband fears.

supporting

Also known as Chicot, the suspected Chicot, Madame Chicot, Mademoiselle Chicot

First appearance: La Chicot

As a supporting figure in The Cloven Foot, La Chicot is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

A dancer whose beauty and wildness captivate audiences; she dominates her husband, spends lavishly, and grows coarser over time.

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La Chicot is a theatrical sensation in Cibber Street, courted and run after, her name in three-foot capitals across London. She dismisses Jack's warnings about the drunken scene-shifter with a shrug—she means to do it, and no one diverts her. When the machinery fails, her near-death becomes a public question, and the neighbourhood's gossip reveals a marriage already hollowed out by drink and indifference.

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Character Web

32 connections

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Relationship types

Professional
Rivalry
Psychological
Other

Character groups

Core cast and family
French conspirators and secrets
Extended cast and historical references

+27 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This scene is the dramatic climax because it marks the emotional peak where Laura’s trust and love are directl…

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Relationships

Mr. Desrolles
professional · ambivalent
La Chicot is a servant or employee of Mr. How this plays out →
Edward Clare
rivalry · negative
Mrs. Treverton
psychological · negative
George Gerard
rivalry · negative
Mr. Desrolles
professional · ambivalent
La Chicot is a servant or employee of Mr. How this plays out →
Edward Clare
rivalry · negative
Mr. Desrolles
professional · ambivalent
La Chicot is a servant or employee of Mr. How this plays out →
George Gerard
rivalry · negative
Mrs. Treverton
psychological · negative
George Gerard
rivalry · negative
Edward Clare
rivalry · negative
Mrs. Treverton
psychological · negative

Mr. Desrolles
La Chicot is a servant or employee of Mr. Desrolles, with a relationship defined by duty and occasional intrigue.
Edward Clare
Edward and La Chicot are antagonists, often clashing over secrets and loyalties within the household.
Mrs. Treverton
La Chicot is a pawn in Mrs. Treverton's manipulations, used to gather information and carry out covert tasks.
George Gerard
George and La Chicot are enemies, each suspicious of the other's motives and actions regarding the Clare family.
Mr. Desrolles
La Chicot is a servant or employee of Mr. Desrolles, with a relationship defined by duty and occasional intrigue.
Edward Clare
Edward and La Chicot are antagonists, often clashing over secrets and loyalties within the household.
Mr. Desrolles
La Chicot is a servant or employee of Mr. Desrolles, with a relationship defined by duty and occasional intrigue.
George Gerard
George and La Chicot are enemies, each suspicious of the other's motives and actions regarding the Clare family.
Mrs. Treverton
La Chicot is a pawn in Mrs. Treverton's manipulations, used to gather information and carry out covert tasks.
George Gerard
George and La Chicot are enemies, each suspicious of the other's motives and actions regarding the Clare family.
Edward Clare
Edward and La Chicot are antagonists, often clashing over secrets and loyalties within the household.
Mrs. Treverton
La Chicot is a pawn in Mrs. Treverton's manipulations, used to gather information and carry out covert tasks.

Relationship notes

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In the story

La Chicot appears across 20 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

La Chicot
A dancer whose beauty and wildness captivate audiences; she dominates her husband, spends lavishly, and grows coarser over time.
La Chicot
Jack Chicot, La Chicot's husband, a painter and critic who suffers silently under his wife's temper and regrets their marriage.
La Chicot Has Her Own Way
Jack Chicot, the husband of La Chicot, feels trapped in a miserable marriage, working as a draughtsman and fearing for his wife's safety.
La Chicot Has Her Own Way
La Chicot, a ballet dancer, insists on performing a dangerous ascent and accepts an anonymous gold bracelet, leading to a quarrel with her husband.
Days That Are Over, Dreams That Are Done
Lies unconscious after a stage accident, her life hanging by a thread.
Days That Are Over, Dreams That Are Done
Returns home after a week's absence; his relief at his wife's condition is detected by Gerard.
XIV: “You Have but to Say the Word”
Drinks heavily, dismisses her husband and suitor, and lives defiantly despite Gerard's warnings.
XIV: “You Have but to Say the Word”
Jack Chicot is an absent, wandering husband; his marriage to La Chicot is nominal and strained.
Edward Clare Discovers a Likeness
Mentioned as a hard-working comic artist whose wife drinks heavily; he bears a strong likeness to a man Edward knows.
Edward Clare Discovers a Likeness
Described as a French dancer and Chicot's wife, with a propensity for drinking.
XVI: Shall It Be “Yes” or “No”?
La Chicot is the central figure, wrestling with the decision to accept Joseph Lemuel's offer of diamonds and a new life in Paris, while still clinging to her identity as an honest woman and her lingering love for her husband.
XVI: Shall It Be “Yes” or “No”?
Jack Chicot, La Chicot's husband, is mentioned as neglectful and nearly estranged, with La Chicot suspecting he has another woman.
XVII: Murder
Jack Chicot discovers his wife's body and raises the alarm, then disappears while supposedly fetching a policeman.
XVII: Murder
Found murdered in her bed with a throat wound; the chapter centers on the discovery of her body.
What the Diamonds Were Worth
The murder victim; her wound is examined by Gerard and later by the surgeon who set her broken leg.
What the Diamonds Were Worth
The missing husband, presumed murderer; his paint box contains the suspected murder weapon.
XXVII: Desrolles Is Not Communicative
Chicot is the caricaturist and fellow lodger of Desrolles, suspected of murdering his wife. Desrolles suggests he may have drowned himself in the Thames.
XXVII: Desrolles Is Not Communicative
The murdered dancer, wife of Chicot, whose death is central to the conversation. Edward Clare refers to her fate as a warning for Laura.
At the Morgue
Recalled in John's memory: her past in Paris, her rise as a dancer, and her hysterical reaction at the Morgue.
Mr. Leopold Asks Irrelevant Questions
The murder victim, Treverton's wife; her death is the subject of the inquiry.

Chapter companion notes

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