70- 26,261 OIELENBERG, John Edward, 1933- SCENE DESIGN AT THE COMEDIE-FRANCAISE 1901 - 1920. The Ohio State University, Ph.D., 1970 Theater University Microfilms, A XEROX Company , Ann Arbor, Michigan Copyright by John Edvard Bielenberg 1971 SCENE DESIGN AT THE COMEDIE-FRANCAISE 1901 - 1920 DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Deqree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of the Ohio State University By John Edvard Bielenberq, D.S., M.A. The Ohio State University 1970 Approved by Adviser Department of Theatre Please Note: Some pages have very light type. Filmed as received. University Microfilms. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my deepest appreciation to Madame Sylvie Chevalley, Archivist of the Cornedie- Francaise, and to the administrators and members of the Coinedie-Francaise, for permitting the microfilming of those materials in their archives without which this study could not have been attempted, and for granting me permission to reproduce selected items for inclusion as illustrations. In turn, I would like to thank Dr. John McDowell and the staff of the Ohio State University Theatre Collection for securing the microfilms from the Comedie- Francaise and making them available to me. ii VITA April 15, 1933 Born, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 1955 B.S., Carroll College, Waukesha, Wisconsin 1955 , 1956 Union Theological Seminary, New York, New York 1956 -1958 U.S. Army 1959 N.A., Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 1959 - 1961 Instructor of Theatre Arts, Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, Illinois 1961 - 1963 Student, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 1963 - 1966 Assistant Professor of Theatre Arts, Eastern Illinois University 1966 - 1970 Associate Professor of Theatre, The State University of New York at Binghamton, New York iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS....................................... ii VITA .................................................. ill LIST OF T A B L E S ....................................... vi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS................................ vii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION 1 The Com^die-Francaise Scene Design and the Coinedie-Francaise Previous Related Studies Primary Sources Period Determinants Organization of the Study II SCENE DESIGN AND THE PARISIAN THEATRE, 1901 - 1920 ................................. 18 The French Contribution to the "New Movement" The Russian Ballet Jacques Rouche and the Theatre des Arts L*0iseau bleu and L'Annonce fait a Marie The Theatre du vieux Colombier The Com^die-Francaise III THE COMEDIE-FRANCAISEl BACKSTAGE ORIENTATION 45 The Scenic Artists of the Cornedie-Francaise The Stage of the Theatre-Francais IV SCENE DESIGN AND THE REPERTOIRE............ 63 The Magnitude of the Total Repertoire The Role of the Classical and Modern Repertoires The Status of Premieres in the Repertoire The Nature of the Premieres in the Repertoire The Scenic Implications of the Repertoire iv TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued) CHAPTER Page SCENIC FORM AND PRACTICE 106 Scenic Form The Scenic Repertoire The Scenic Options The Conglomerate Setting Scenic Handling VI SCENIC STYLE AND COMPOSITION ............... 150 Realism at the Coined ie-Francaise The Role of Decoration Applied Depth and Implied Space The Success of the Illusion The Corned ie-Francaise and the "New Movement" VII THREE REPRESENTATIVE PRODUCTIONS ........... 189 Notes on La Marquis de Priola Notes on L*Amour veille Notes on Les Soeurs d *amour VIII SUMMARY ...................................... 223 APPENDIX A. THE REPERTOIRE OF THE COM^DIE-FRANCAISE 1901 - 1920 ................................. 229 B. PREMIERES IN THE REPERTOIRE OF THE COMEDIE-FRANCAISE 1901 - 1920 .............. 245 BIBLIOGRAPHY.......................................... 266 V LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. The Status of Premieres and the "Twentieth Century" Repertoire in the Total Repertoire of the Comedie-Francaise, By Year, 1901 to 1920 ............................................ 65 2. A Month's Repertoire at the Comedie-Francaise, February, 1912 ........... .............. 66 3. A Month's Repertoire at the Comedie-Francaise, September, 1912 ................................ 69 4. One-Act Play Premieres Which Received More Than Twenty-Five Performances From 1901 to 1920 ............................................ 82 5. One-Act Play Premieres Which Were in the Repertoire for Five Years or M o r e ....... ..... 83 6. Long Play Premieres Which Received More Than Fifty Performances From 1901 to 1920 ....... 84 7. Lonq Play Premieres Which Were inthe Repertoire for Five Years or M o r e ............ • 85 8. The Twenty-Five Playwrights of the Comedie- Francaise Whose Plays, Premiering Between 1901 and 1920, Received the Most Performances ...... 94 v i LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure Page 1. Rendering for L1 Eniqme (1901) ................ 109 2. Rendering for L*Autre danger (1902) ..... 110 3. Rendering for Le Duel (1905) ............. 112 4. Rendering for Les Marionnettes (1910) ......... 113 5. Production Photo of Act I of La Courtisane (1906) .................... 117 6. Production Photo of Tableau 6 of Don Quichotte (1905) ................... 118 7. Production Photo of Act I of Le Pr^texte (1906) ...................... 119 8. Rehearsal Photo of Act III of Le Paon (1904) . 120 9. Production Photo of Le Flibustier (1888) ..... 131 10. Production Photo of Yvonic (1913) ............ 132 11. Production Photo of Act III of Le Foyer (1908) 133 12. Production Photo of Act I of La Marche nuptiale (1913) .................... 134 13. Set Photo of Act I of Le Dedale (1903) ....... 143 14. Set Photo of Act II of Le D^dale (1903) ...... 144 15. Set Photo of Act III of Le D^dale (1903) ..... 145 16. Set Photo of Act V of Le D^dale (1903) ...... 146 17. Production Photo of Act III of Les Deux hommes (1908) ............................ 157 18. Production Photo of Act III of Les Affaires .. sont les affaires (1903) ............... 158 vii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS (Continued) Figure Page 19. Production Photo of Act IV of La Courtisane (1906) .................... 160 20. Production Photo of Tableau 4 of Don Quichotte (1905) ...... 162 21. Production Photo of Act I of La Fleur merveilleuse (1910) ....... 163 22. Production Photo of Tableau 1 of ShylocK. ou le marchand de Venise (1905) ........... 167 23. Production Photo of Tableau 2 of Shy1ock. ou le marchand de Venise (1905) ........... 168 24. Rendering for Les Noces d*argent (1917) ...... 170 25. Rendering for Le Gout du vice (1911) ......... 171 26. Production Photo of Act I of Poliche (1906) .. 174 27. Set Photo of Act IV of La Petite amie (1902) . 176 28. Production Photo of Act I of L*Embuscade (1913) ................................... 181 29. Production Photo of Att IV of L* Embuscade (1913) ................................... 182 30. Production Photo of Act I of Juliette et Roro^o (1920) ............................. 184 31. Production Photo of Act III of Juliette et Rom^o (1920) ............................. 185 32. Production Photo of Act I of L * Amour M^decin (1920) ................ 187 33. Set Photo of Les Femmes savantes (1914) ...... 188 34. Floor Plan of Act I of La Marquis de Priola .. 195 35. Rendering for Act I of La Marquis de Priola .. 196 36. Set Photo of Act I of La Marquis de Priola ... 197 vii i l i s t OF ILLUSTRATIONS (Continued) Figure Page 37, Floor Plan of Act II of La Marquis de Priola . 198 38, Rendering for Act II of La Marquis de Priola . 199 39, Set Photo of Act II of La Marquis de Priola .. 200 40, Floor Plan of Act III of La Marquis de Priola 201 41, Rendering for Act III of La Marquis de Priola 202 42, Set Photo of Act III of La Marcruis de Priola . 203 43, Rendering and Floor Plan for Act I of L * Amour v e i l l e ......... 207 44, Production Photo of Act I of L * Amour veille .. 208 45, Rendering and Floor Plan of Act II of L*Amour veille ........................ 209 46, Rendering and Floor Plan of Act III of L’Amour veille ............... 210 47, Production Photo of Act III of L * Amour veille 211 48, Production Photo of Act IV of L ’Amour veille . 212 49, Set Photo of Act I of Les Soeurs d* amour 215 50. Production Photo of Act I of Les Soeurs d*amour 216 51. Set Photo of Act II of Les Soeurs d*amour 217 52. Floor Plan of Act III of Les Soeurs d*amour .. 218 53. Set Photo ot Act III of Les Soeurs d 'amour ... 219 54. Floor Plan of Act IV of Les Soeurs d*amour 220 55. Rendering for Act IV of Les Soeurs d * amour ... 221 56. Set Photo of Act IV of Les Soeurs d*amour .... 22 2 ix Chapter I INTRODUCTION The Comedie-Francaise The Coined ie-Francaise vas once described by a loyal French citizen as an altogether indispensable institution, one "whose disappearance vould be as inconceivable as that of the Array or Navy." 1 Countless others have* with equal pride( attested eloquently to the greatness of its achieve­ ments and its high status of glory In French cultural life. No institution can consistently live up to the very highest expectations of its constituents and so the Comedie has occasionally disappointed even those most loyal to it, thereby casting a temporary shadow of doubt about its achievements and dimming its temporal glory. Frenchmen themselves are free to subscribe to or refute this admittedly elusivr? quality of greatness — as they have off and on dur­ ing many periods of alternating crisis and calm in the French national theatre — but the foreigner is obliged to accept a priori the judgements he cannot test or to be per­ verse and reject them. There seems to be no compelling 1 Pierre Brisson, "The Comedie-Francaise," London Mercury. 39(December, 1938), p. 155. 1 2 reason for following the latter course. The Comedie-Fran- caise is "great** because the French people have said that it is so. if not by unanimous ballot, by overwhelming accli­ mation. The question of **greatness,,aside. it is incontro­ vertible that the Comedie-Francaise has been and remains one of the world's most renowned and unique theatrical institu­ tions. By age alone it ranks supreme, for it has retained its autonomy and survived for nearly three hundred years, a record unsurpassed in the history of Western Theatre.