The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1885-06-05
VOCAL AND IN
STRUMENTAL.
Continued from Mau 2I.

SIRUMENIAI.
Continued from, Mau 21.l
The right to sing seems to have been
interpreted as including the right to
dance and several ladies and gentle
men of good birth profted by the kings
liberality to appear in the ballets repre-
scented at the Academic Royale. The
music of Louis XIV.'s ballet was for the
most part written by LulI, who also
composed the songs and symphonies
for the dances interlude of Moliere's
comedies. The ballet dadioaa, what mu-
sicians of this age would call dramatic
ballets, was invented by the Duchesse
du Main, celebrated for her evening en-
tertainments at Sceaux, which the
mobiles of Louis XIV.'s court found so
exhilarating after the formal festivities
of Versailles. have small book be-
fore me that gives the names of many
people of nobility who possessed pas
sion for theatrical representations.
Among them | find the Duchesse men
toned. conclude, therefore, that her
great passion for such entertainments,
combined with taste for literature, en-
abled her to project, and realize on the
stage, her own theatre, thereby produc-
ing her idea of the pantomimes of an
tiquity, as she found them described in
the pages of her favorite authors. She
worked precisely as the arranger of a
ballet would do in the present day. Thus
taking the fourth act of Les Horaces'
as her libretto Ito use the modern term)
she had it set to music for orchestra
alone, and to the orchestral strains
caused the parts of Horace and of Ca
milla to be performed in dumb show by
two celebrated dancers who had never
attempted pantomime before By in
vestigation, | find that Balon and Mile.
Provost were favorite artists of the
Duchesse, and that they often entered
with so much feeling into the characters
assigned to them that they drew tears
from the spectators. 1t is, therefore,
safe to conclude that they were the two
celebrated dancers mentioned above
Mouret, the musical director of the
Duchesse's Mutt de Sceallx," composed
several ballets, on the principle of hel
ballet of Les Horaces" for the Acade
mic Royale.
| REMARKS.
During the early days of the French
opera, and | may say until nearly the
end of the 18th century, it was difficult
to obtain dancers in any great number
and almost impossible to find female
dancers The company of vocalists was
recruited from the cathedral choirs, but
for the ballet there were only the dan
cling masters of the capital and then
pupils of the male sex to select from
There were no dancing mistresses, anC
ladies would not under any circumstances
have consented to dance in public
On this point, however, the fashion was
destined soon to change. Nymphs
dryads and shepherdesses were for 6
time represented by boys, who equally
with fame and satire wore masks But
at last ladies of the higher position, and
not a few ladies of title among them, ap
peared by express desire Of the king ii
the ballets at Versailles, joining the
opera In the character of ballet dancers
| now take up the history of ballet dan
/ GERS.
The first professional ballerina of note
at the Academic was Mile. Lafontaine
who, with three other danseuses and 6
beftting number of male dancers, form
ed the entire ballet company. It is no
necessary to relate the stories, more OF
less scandalous, told of various bale
dancers-ofthe Demoiselles de Camargo
of Mile. Pelissier (who, it is written
visited London, where she was warmly
received, in 1874, she HAVING been ex
PEELED from Paris Of Mile. Petit, dis
missed from the opera for misconduct
and defended in a pamphlet by the Able
| della Marie; of Mile. Maze, who, ruined
| by Laws financial scheme, dressed her
self in her most brilliant costume, anC
drowned herself publicly at noon, or O
| Mile. Subligny, who went to England
with letters of introduction from tht
Able Dubois. The eminent metaphy
stefan who had hitherto paid more at
tention to the operations of the human
mind than to the art of dancing die
| honor to the Abbe's recommendation
and las Foratenelle declared in lette,
on the subject constituted himself he
man of business" We now, however
come to ballerina, Mile. Sole, who
besides being distinguished in her owl
particular art, introduced genera
theatrical reform In the early part O
the eighteenth century-as indeed at .
much later period-all sorts of anachron
ism and errors of taste were commit
ted in connection with costume. Assy
rian, Greek and Roman warriors appear
| ed and danced pas seols in the ballets o
the Academic Royale, wearing LACED
tunics and powdered wigs with pig tail
a yard long. The wigs were surmount
ed by helmets, and the manly breasts O
the much-beribboned warriors were en-
cased in a cuirass. Mile. Sole proposed
that each character should wear tn,
costume of his country and period, and
though this startling innovation was no
accepted generally in the drama unit
nearly a century later Mile. Sole sue
ceeded in causing the principles she ad
vocated to be observed at the opera
least during her own time, and SO far a
regarded the ballet.
| In II