Sand george

1862 · 003597 — Paris: A. Levy Fils 1862. Quarter Morocco pebbled cloth boards. Very Good. Sand Maurice. 2 volumes 4to. 28 by 19 cm. viii 356 2 384 pp. 50 hand-colored plates featuring the stock characters of the improvisational Theatre Italienne such as Harlequino Arlechino Pulcinella Colombine Pagliaccio Pierrot Pantalon L'Apothicaire Le Notaire Scaramuccia Pasquariello etc. Nowadays these characters are most familiar to opera-goers thanks to the comical works of Donizetti Mascagni Busoni Mozart etc. Most of these characters grew out of the roaming theatrical troupes that originated in Italy of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The costume and basic personality of the character remained stable from one performance to the next but within those parameters the characters in a troupe usually following the broad contours of a story line would improvise bringing in buffonery perhaps relating to the events of the day the specific venue where they were appearing or whatever else might spring into their mind on the spur of the moment. In the eighteenth century the free form went into decline replaced by more scripted plays but its influence is very evident in the plays of Goldoni Moliere who worked well before the form vanished and besides the opera buffa early twentieth century Vaudeville ballet and more current comedy. Also the costume from the Theatre Italienne has never failed to excite enthusiasm and thus it is often celebrated in the decorative arts as perhaps most magnificently in porcelain beginning in the eighteenth century with Meissen Nymphenburg and many other makes. Today the style of Harlequin or Arlecchino continue to be emulated in clothes design with some regularity. This two volume celebration of the costume and characters of this theater was written by Maurice Sand who was the son of the novelist George Sand who wrote the preface. Maurice Sand 1823 -1889 was an accomplished illustrator and writer in his own right. Occasional soiling sometimes toning around perimeter outside of tissue guards which have survived remarkably well. Rubbing along joints and moderate wear of boards. Very handsome marbled painting of edges. A. Levy Fils unknown