Les Métamorphoses de Melpomene et de Thalie, ou, Caracteres dramatiques des comedies francaise & italienne
Publisher: Chez Robert Sayer, No 53 Fleet-Street, publié suivant l'Acte du Parlement
Published: 1772
Place of publication: A Londres
Language: fre
Number of pages: 25
Subjects: Actors; Portraits; Theater; History
Other titles: Caractéres dramatiques des comedies francaise & italienne
Notes: In the Paris, [ca. 1770?] ed., the ill. are described as "dessiné d'après nature, par Whirsker".

Consists of a letterpress title-page printed in red and black, engraved "Liste des caracteres" ([1] leaf), and [23] engraved leaves of ill.; 5 of the leaves are folded.

The ill. consist of full-length ports. of contemporary French actors in costume; a few captions include short excerpts of dialogue.

Another, presumably earlier, ed. was pub. with imprint: A Paris: Chez l'auteur ... A Versailles: Chez Blaizot, [ca. 1770?]; cf. Colas 3073. In the London ed., the ill. have been re-engraved, with altered captions (omitting most of the dialogue), and with Sayer's imprint added at bottom.

In the Harvard Theatre Collection copy, the "Liste des caracteres" is printed from the same copperplate used for the Paris, [1770?] ed. but is printed on the same paper used for the other ill.

Colas, R. Costume, 3074.

The "Liste des caracteres" is bound at end.

Bound in are 35 additional engraved theatrical portraits, 4 with the London imprint of Jefferys & Faden, the rest with imprint of J. Smith & R. Sayer variously dated from 1769-1772. The Smith & Sayer prints are from: Dramatic characters, or, Different portraits of the English stage (London, [1772?]).

Bound in nineteenth-century brown morocco, covers and edges gilt, by P. Ruban.