Description
Book SynopsisArising from the activities of the Centre for Seventeenth-Century French Theatre, this volume proposes a selection of eighteen essays by internationally renowned scholars aimed at all those who value and work with the theatre of seventeenth-century France, whether in teaching, research or performance. Frequently seeking out the interfaces of these areas, the essays cover historiography (including that of opera), the theory and practice of textual editing, visualizing – in terms of both theatre architecture and the significance of playtext illustration - , approaches to study and research (including the most recent applications of computer technology), and performance studies which relate the classical canon to contemporary French and other cultures. Always suggesting new directions, challenging the epistemological bases of the very concept of French classical theatre, the essays provide a snapshot of scholarship in the field at the dawn of a new millennium, and offer an ideal opportunity to reassess its past whilst looking to its future.
Table of ContentsForeword and Acknowledgements Introduction Philip TOMLINSON: French ‘Classical’ Theatre Today I. In Retrospect C.E.J. CALDICOTT: For the Non-Classical in Seventeenth-Century French Theatre William BROOKS: Decrypting the Chronology of Early French-Opera Charles MAZOUER: Comment écrire une histoire du théâtre du XVIIe siècle? II. Editing Keith CAMERON: The Critical Edition: The Editor’s Incubus? John DUNKLEY: Old Plays; Modern Editions III. Visualizing Catherine GUILLOT: La Recherche en iconographie théâtrale aujourd’hui: quelques réflexions sur l’utilisation de l’image du livre du XVIIe siècle Abby E. ZANGER: Betwixt and Between Print and Performance: A New Approach to Molière’s Body of/at Work Jan CLARKE: The Hôtel Guénégaud Auditorium according to the Theatre’s Account Books Christa WILLIFORD: Computer Modelling Classical French Theatre Spaces: Three Reconstructions IV. Studying Andrew CALDER: ‘Le Misanthrope’: From Ideas to Shared Experience Christopher SMITH: Racine in the Modern Modern Languages Curriculum Véronique DESNAIN: ‘Fille de Jézabel’: Female Genealogies in Racine V. Performing David BERRY: ‘Rough Magic’: Ted Hughes’s Translation of Jean Racine’s ‘Phèdre’ Thomas YARWOOD: Staging Racine in England Now: The Almeida’s ‘Phèdre’ and ‘Britannicus’ Christian BIET: L’Interprétation des classiques sur la scène française contemporaine VI. In Prospect Barry RUSSELL: Theatre Scholarship in the Age of Electronics Guy SPIELMANN: ‘Spectacles du Grand Siècle’: Du project épistémologique au projet éducatif List of Illustrations List of Contributors
