The XVIIIth century; its institutions, customs, and costumes France, 1700-1789 . theyhad enjoyed previous to their expulsion. But as the Italian languagewas not familiar to the Avealthy parvenus, without whom a theatrecannot hope to prosper, the Italians, amongst whom were severalgood comic actors, such as Romagnesi, Dominico, Biancolelli, andRiccoboni, gradually resorted to pieces written in French. This wasthe origin of the good fortune which, while preserving its title ofThddtre-Ilalicn, was in turn a formidable rival for the Opera, theCom^die-Francaise, and the Opera-Comique. The origin of
The XVIIIth century; its institutions, customs, and costumes France, 1700-1789 . theyhad enjoyed previous to their expulsion. But as the Italian languagewas not familiar to the Avealthy parvenus, without whom a theatrecannot hope to prosper, the Italians, amongst whom were severalgood comic actors, such as Romagnesi, Dominico, Biancolelli, andRiccoboni, gradually resorted to pieces written in French. This wasthe origin of the good fortune which, while preserving its title ofThddtre-Ilalicn, was in turn a formidable rival for the Opera, theCom^die-Francaise, and the Opera-Comique. The origin of Frenchcomic-opera may be traced to the temporary theatres at the and St. Germain fairs, where it was first played in 1713 by THE THEATRES. 395 permission of the Rojal Academy of Music, which had the right ofprohibiting the performance. Thanks to this arrangement, the fairtheatre became the Op6ra-Comique, which had a career not lessprosperous than the Theatre-ItaHen, with the charming vaudevilles,with interludes of ballet, which Le Sage, Dorneval, and Fuzelier gave. Fig. 260.—Mdllc. Clairon, Ihe celebrated tragedienne ; after Schenau (1766). there for more than thirty years. The only theatres in Paris up to1719 were the Opera, the Comedie-Francaise, the Comedie-Italienne,and the Opera-Comique. The three last had each a special vein ofcomedy which is well-defined by St. Foix : Thalia, at the Theatre-Francais, has a noble and dignified bearing: she likes ingeniousplots, well-developed situations, delicate and almost impalpable satire,maxims which are neither gloomy nor ponderous, a style as devoid oftragic gravity as of the vulgarity of the strolling-player. At the 396 THE EIGHTEENTH CEXTURY. Theatre-Italien, the muse is not less faithful to the fashion which shehas initiated there. Nearly always gay and sportive, she scarcelytouches on subjects of morality. A new fashion, an art-dispute, anyoccurrence which has been the talk of the town for four-and-twentyhours form
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