The doll fairy
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The Puppenfee is a pantomime divertissement ( ballet ) in one act. The libretto was written by Joseph Haßreiter and Franz Xaver Gaul . The choreography comes from Joseph Haßreiter, the music was composed by Josef Bayer in 1888. The Puppenfee is one of the most popular ballet works in German-speaking countries. The world premiere took place on October 4, 1888 in the KK Hof Opera Theater in Vienna . On the occasion of a charity event under the protectorate of Princess Pauline Metternich, the work was first performed under the title “Im Puppenladen” in Prince Johannes Liechtenstein's palace at the beginning of April 1888; only aristocrats danced.
Emergence
In early 1888, the Viennese ballet master Joseph Haßreiter and his friend, the painter Franz Gaul, had the idea of designing an entertaining ballet that would be played in a doll's shop and in which the puppets would bewitch the audience as humanized beings. The idea was not new, as Léo Delibes and the choreographer Arthur Saint-Léon had already successfully brought ETA Hoffmann's story “ The Sandman ” , in which a doll plays the leading role, onto the ballet stage as “ Coppélia ” in 1870 . Haßreiter and Gaul wrote the libretto together and called their ballet “Im Puppenladen”. In search of a composer, they approached the ballet conductor at the K. u. K. Hofoperntheater Josef Bayer, who a few years earlier had already caused a sensation with his composition for the ballet “Viennese Waltz” . Bayer was able to warm to the idea right away. The first performance on October 4th, 1888 was a sensational success for everyone involved. Above all, Bayer's effective music ensured that the work had the highest number of performances in German-speaking countries for a long time. Later the title “Im Puppenladen” was replaced by “Die Puppenfee” . The success spilled over to Russia, where the work in the choreography of Sergej and Nikolai Legat went over the stages.
The libretto by Haßreiter and Gaul later served André Derain and Leonide Massine as a template for their ballet “La Boutique Fantasque” (The Magic Shop) .
people
- A toy dealer
- His assistant
- Sir James Plumpstershire, a wealthy Englishman
- Lady Plumpstershire, his wife
- The three children of the Plumpstershire couple
- A farmer
- Whose wife
- The daughter of the peasant couple
- A maid
- Employee of a hotel
- A clerk
- Postman
- The doll fairy
- Seven female mechanical figures
- Four male mechanical figures
action
Image: Doll shop with workshop in Vienna
After opening the curtain, you can see the toy dealer and doll maker at work. He is currently in the process of creating another example for his large collection of various types of dolls. Meanwhile, the artist's factotum frees other dolls from the dust so that they look more pleasant to the eye. Suddenly the postman enters the room and bumps into a doll. This immediately begins to dance. After the postman has left, a sad girl comes into the shop with a badly damaged doll. The doll maker ensures that the toy shines again in its old splendor and the girl can smile again. The next visitors are a rough farmer with his wife and daughter. The three behave rather clumsily and cause a large doll to fall over. So the master never runs out of work.
The doll dealer enjoys an excellent reputation far beyond his home country. This can also be seen from the fact that even the English Lord Plumpstershire with his wife and three children found their way to him. Your wish is to have a doll that can dance. The master proudly wants to show the English a doll that he believes has turned out particularly well. However, to his disappointment, the toy fails completely. But whatever? The shop has plenty of other dolls to offer, which are now being presented one after the other: Dolls in clothing from very different peoples who perform dances from their “home countries” Austria, Spain, China and Japan. The conclusion is the puppet fairy dancing a waltz. The couple from England are delighted and place an order. It is now evening. The doll maker closes his shop and goes home.
Now the real divertissement begins in the doll shop: all dolls come to life. They perform acrobatic dances, joke, play and make music. In the center of the action, however, is the doll fairy, who is regarded by all dolls as their queen and who is honored.
Individual evidence
- ^ Theophila Wassilko: Fürstin Pauline Metternich , Vienna 1958, p. 190 f.
- ↑ "The public had a great time with this funny, splendidly furnished divertissement ..." In: Hofoperntheater .. In: Neue Freie Presse , October 5, 1888, p. 6 (online at ANNO ).
- ↑ "The success was also a resounding one." In: (Hofoperntheater). In: Wiener Presse , October 8, 1888, p. 3 (online at ANNO ).
- ↑ "Indeed, Messrs. J. Haßreiter, F. Gaul and J. Bayer have achieved the best that a worthy public can encounter in more mature years: they gave their enthusiastic viewers an hour of youth!" Max Kalbeck in : Features. Opera and ballet. In: Die Presse , October 6, 1888, p. 2 (online at ANNO ).
