Mime, Music and Drama on the Eighteenth-Century Stage

Edward Nye is Fellow of Lincoln College and Lecturer in French at the University of Oxford. His research centres on the eighteenth century and on artistic aesthetics in particular, and he is also interested in the history of ideas across centuries and national borders. He is the author of Literary and Linguistic Theories in Eighteenth-Century France (2000), the editor of a volume of literary reflections on dance, Sur Quel Pied Danser? Danse et Littérature (2005) and the editor of a scholarly anthology on the literature of cycling, A Bicyclette (2000).

• Introduction; Part I. The Ballet d'Action in Historical Context: 1. The voice and the body in the enlightenment; 2. A revival of Roman pantomime?; 3. No place for harlequin; 4. Decroux and Noverre: distant cousins?; Part II. The Ballet d'Action in Close-Up: Dramatic Principles: 5. Character and action; 6. Dialogues in mime; 7. Choreography is painterly drama; 8. The admirable consent between music and action; 9. Putting performance into words; Conclusions; Appendix; Bibliography.