
Ballet and Opera in the Age of Giselle
Marian Smith(Author)
Princeton University Press
1st Edition
Published on 29. August 2010
Book
Paperback/Softback
288 pages
978-0-691-14649-2 (ISBN)
Description
Marian Smith recaptures a rich period in French musical theater when ballet and opera were intimately connected. Focusing on the age of Giselle at the Paris Opera (from the 1830s through the 1840s), Smith offers an unprecedented look at the structural and thematic relationship between the two genres. She argues that a deeper understanding of both ballet and opera--and of nineteenth-century theater-going culture in general--may be gained by examining them within the same framework instead of following the usual practice of telling their histories separately. This handsomely illustrated book ultimately provides a new portrait of the Opera during a period long celebrated for its box-office successes in both genres. Smith begins by showing how gestures were encoded in the musical language that composers used in ballet and in opera. She moves on to a wide range of topics, including the relationship between the gestures of the singers and the movements of the dancers, and the distinction between dance that represents dancing (entertainment staged within the story of the opera) and dance that represents action.
Smith maintains that ballet-pantomime and opera continued to rely on each other well into the nineteenth century, even as they thrived independently. The "divorce" between the two arts occurred little by little, and may be traced through unlikely sources: controversies in the press about the changing nature of ballet-pantomime music, shifting ideas about originality, complaints about the ridiculousness of pantomime, and a little-known rehearsal score for Giselle.
Smith maintains that ballet-pantomime and opera continued to rely on each other well into the nineteenth century, even as they thrived independently. The "divorce" between the two arts occurred little by little, and may be traced through unlikely sources: controversies in the press about the changing nature of ballet-pantomime music, shifting ideas about originality, complaints about the ridiculousness of pantomime, and a little-known rehearsal score for Giselle.
Reviews / Votes
Winner of the 2001 De la Torre Bueno Prize for Most Distinguished Book in Dance Scholarship, Dance Perspectives Foundation (New York) "To readers interested in the evolution of opera and ballet performance practice, Smith's meticulously documented study offers a chance to see many familiar works in a new and surprising light."--M. Lignana Rosenberg, Opera News "Marian Smith's book is a swift and easy read, fully researched, informative, genuinely insightful about her subject. Definitely one for the bookshelf."--David Blewitt, Opera NowMore details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
New Jersey
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
44 halftones, 50 line illus., 19 tables
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
Thickness: 18 mm
Weight
503 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-691-14649-2 (9780691146492)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Marian Smith
Ballet and Opera in the Age of Giselle
E-Book
09/2015
1st Edition
Princeton University Press
€43.99
Available for download
Person
Marian Smith is Associate Professor of Music at the University of Oregon.
Content
LIST OF TABLES AND ILLUSTRATIONS ix PREFACE xi ACKN0WLEDGMENTS xix NOTE T0 READER xxi CHAPTER ONE: Introduction: Music and the Story 3 CHAPTER TWO: A Family Resemblance 19 CHAPTER THREE: The Lighter Tone of Ballet-Pantomime 59 CHAPTER FOUR: Ballet-Pantomime and Silent Language 97 CHAPTER FIVE: Hybrid Works at the Opera 124 CHAPTER SIX: Giselle 167 APPENDIX ONE: Ballet-Pantomimes and Operas Produced at the Paris Opera, 1825-1850 201 APPENDIX TWO: The Giselle Libretto 213 APPENDIX THREE: Sources for Musical Examples 239 NOTES 241 INDEX 301