On March 19, 1859, Faust by Charles Gounod was staged for the first time at the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris. The welcome was warm, but subsequent changes to the score, with cuts and alterations, together with some ingenious promotional ideas, soon made a resounding success, so much so that, ten years after its debut, the staging at the Paris Opéra consecrated Faust among the masterpieces of the French musical theatre. The scenic design contributed to the approval consistently, being set by a team of wellknown artists, according to the custom of the greatest Parisian theaters and making skilful use of current technical devices and stage effects. This paper aims to focus on the astonishing traps and tricks with which Mephistopheles worked out to convince Faust to sell his soul. Afterwards, a brief comparison with the most recent and debated production of Gounod's opera in Paris will be proposed (by Jean-Louis Martinoty in 2011), trying to analyze its distinctive scenic ideas.
I trucchi di Mefistofele. Scenografie per il Faust di Gounod
Carlo Titomanlio
2017-01-01
Abstract
On March 19, 1859, Faust by Charles Gounod was staged for the first time at the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris. The welcome was warm, but subsequent changes to the score, with cuts and alterations, together with some ingenious promotional ideas, soon made a resounding success, so much so that, ten years after its debut, the staging at the Paris Opéra consecrated Faust among the masterpieces of the French musical theatre. The scenic design contributed to the approval consistently, being set by a team of wellknown artists, according to the custom of the greatest Parisian theaters and making skilful use of current technical devices and stage effects. This paper aims to focus on the astonishing traps and tricks with which Mephistopheles worked out to convince Faust to sell his soul. Afterwards, a brief comparison with the most recent and debated production of Gounod's opera in Paris will be proposed (by Jean-Louis Martinoty in 2011), trying to analyze its distinctive scenic ideas.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.