From sketch to set : draughtmanship and stage design in the work of Christian Bérard for the classical theatre 1936-1947 Ariane Vallée Art History Master Degree Institutt for Filosofi, Idé- og Kunsthistorie og Klassiske Språk, Universitet i Oslo Spring 2007 Contents 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................ 5 2 RESEARCH HISTORY AND METHODOLOGY ........................................................... 7 2.1 RESEARCH HISTORY........................................................................................................... 7 2.2 METHODOLOGY.................................................................................................................. 8 3 LOUIS JOUVET, CHRISTIAN BÉRARD AND THE DILEMMAS OF DRAMA IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY..................................................... 10 3.1 REJUVENATING CLASSICAL THEATRE............................................................................. 10 3.1.1 JACQUES COPEAU, LOUIS JOUVET AND THE CARTEL ..................................................... 11 3.1.2 THE DEBATE AROUND CLASSICAL THEATRE................................................................... 14 3.2 MODERN STAGE DESIGN IN THE MAKING........................................................................ 15 3.3 LOUIS JOUVET AND CHRISTIAN BÉRARD’S RESPONSE .................................................. 17 3.3.1 THE THEATRICAL FEELING AND ITS APPLICATION TO THE SET ....................................... 17 3.3.2 LOUIS JOUVET, CHRISTIAN BÉRARD AND THE CLASSICAL THEATRE ............................. 20 4 CHRISTIAN BÉRARD...................................................................................................... 23 4.1 THE MANY SKILLS OF CHRISTIAN BÉRARD .................................................................... 23 4.2 WORKING METHODS ........................................................................................................ 27 4.3 READINGS.......................................................................................................................... 28 4.4 RESEARCH TECHNIQUES .................................................................................................. 28 4.4.1 RENAISSANCE, SEVENTEENTH CENTURY AND EIGHTEENTH CENTURY SOURCES ........... 29 4.4.2 TWENTIETH CENTURY SOURCES ..................................................................................... 32 4.5 DRAWING TECHNIQUES.................................................................................................... 35 4.6 SET PRODUCTION AND LIGHTING .................................................................................... 36 5 L’ECOLE DES FEMMES ................................................................................................. 39 5.1 THE PLAY .......................................................................................................................... 39 5.2 LOUIS JOUVET’S PRELIMINARY DRAWINGS.................................................................... 41 5.3 THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE SITUATIONS....................................................................... 42 5.4 STYLISATION, ABSTRACTION, AND THEATRICAL ILLUSION........................................... 44 5.4.1 THE HOUSE...................................................................................................................... 45 5.4.2 THE SQUARE.................................................................................................................... 46 5.4.3 THE GARDEN ................................................................................................................... 48 5.4.4 THE CANDELABRA .......................................................................................................... 48 5.5 GRAPHIC EXPLORATION .................................................................................................. 50 5.5.1 MAIN DEVELOPMENTS WITHIN FASHION ILLUSTRATION ................................................ 50 5.5.2 CHRISTIAN BÉRARD’S USE OF FASHION ILLUSTRATION TECHNIQUES IN THE SET Christian Bérard : from sketch to set – Spring 2007 2 DRAWINGS FOR L’ECOLE DES FEMMES ....................................................................................... 52 5.5.3 BÉRARD’S USE OF PAINTERLY TECHNIQUES ................................................................... 54 5.6 THE FINAL SET .................................................................................................................. 55 6 L’ILLUSION....................................................................................................................... 57 6.1 L’ILLUSION : A PLAY WITHIN A PLAY.............................................................................. 57 6.2 LOUIS JOUVET AND CHRISTIAN BÉRARD’S APPROACH ................................................. 60 6.3 ILLUSION IN L’ILLUSION.................................................................................................. 63 6.3.1 ACT I, SCENE I: THE MAGICIAN’S GROTTO ...................................................................... 64 6.3.2 ACT I, SCENE II: CLINDOR’S WARDROBE ........................................................................ 67 6.3.3 ACTS II TO ACT IV, SCENE VI: THE HOUSE OF ISABELLE ............................................... 68 6.3.4 ACT IV, SCENES VII TO X : THE PRISON AND THE WALL ................................................ 72 6.3.5 ACT V: THE THEATRE AND THE GARDEN SCENE ............................................................. 74 6.4 DRAWING IN L’ILLUSION................................................................................................. 78 7 DOM JUAN......................................................................................................................... 85 7.1 THE PLAY .......................................................................................................................... 85 7.2 LOUIS JOUVET AND DOM JUAN ....................................................................................... 88 7.3 THE PRELIMINARY TABLEAUX......................................................................................... 91 7.3.1 THE SEASCAPES............................................................................................................... 92 7.3.2 THE FOREST AND THE COMMENDATORE’S TOMB ........................................................... 95 7.3.3 DOM JUAN’S DINING ROOM............................................................................................. 96 7.3.4 DOM JUAN’S TOMB ......................................................................................................... 96 7.3.5 ACHIEVING UNITY........................................................................................................... 97 7.3.6 ACHIEVING ABSTRACTION ............................................................................................ 102 8 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................. 105 8.1 SUGGESTIVE POWER....................................................................................................... 105 8.2 DÉCOR AS THEATRICAL FEELING.................................................................................. 108 8.2.1 THE COVENANT AND THEATRICAL CONVENTION ......................................................... 109 8.2.2 HUMANISM.................................................................................................................... 110 9 SOURCES.......................................................................................................................... 113 9.1 PRIMARY DATA ............................................................................................................... 113 9.2 CHRISTIAN BÉRARD’S SOURCES .................................................................................... 113 9.3 SECONDARY DATA .......................................................................................................... 114 10 BIBLIOGRAPHY........................................................................................................... 115 10.1 ARCHIVES OF THE BIBLIOTHÈQUE NATIONALE DE FRANCE (BNF)/DÉPARTEMENT DES ARTS DU SPECTACLE (DAS)............................................................................................. 115 10.2 BIBLIOTHÈQUE-MUSÉE DE LA COMÉDIE-FRANCAISE ............................................... 115 Christian Bérard : from sketch to set – Spring 2007 3 10.3 CHRISTIAN BÉRARD ..................................................................................................... 115 10.4 LOUIS JOUVET .............................................................................................................. 115 10.5 MOLIÈRE....................................................................................................................... 116 10.6 THEATRE HISTORY ....................................................................................................... 116 10.6.1 RENAISSANCE AND BAROQUE THEATRE..................................................................... 116 10.6.2 THEATRE HISTORY 1890-1950 .................................................................................... 116 10.7 STAGE DESIGN 1910-1950 ............................................................................................ 117 10.8 FASHION ILLUSTRATION .............................................................................................