Artist: Jules Cheret French (1836-1932)
Title: Scaramouche
Plate: AL.06
Original lithograph from "Les Affiches Illustrees" series,
limited printing of 1025.
Printed by Imprimere Chaix, Paris, 1896.
Reference: Chéret, 302; Broido, 238; Maindron 207; Theaterplakat, 11
Presented in 16 x 20 in. acid free, archival museum mat, with framing labels. Ready to frame. Shipped boxed flat via Fedex.
Certificate of Authenticity.
Sheet Size: approx 8 3/4 in x 12 1/4 in / 22 cm x 31 cm
Price: $325.00
"Successor to the Palace Théâtre at 15 rue Blanche, the Nouveau Théâtre opened on October 17, 1891 at the same address, adjoining the dance hall and café-concert of the Casino de Paris. To inaugurate the stage, the owner chose Scaramouche, starring the red-haired mime Felicia Mallet. For this pantomime about a commedia dell’arte-type scamp, Chéret departs from his usual depictions of women in décolletage to show the performer in her covered-up harlequin costume.: (Rennert)
The Parisian ballet/pantomime Scaramouche had a story written by Maurice Lefèvre and Henri Vuagneux together with music composed by André Messager (1853-1929).
"Within the same year, publisher Paul Ollendorff simplified Chéret’s design and used it as a frontispiece for the publication of the libretto. There was a vogue for the artist’s brightly colored designs and Ollendorff knew the image would sell the book." (princeton.edu)
Jules Cheret
"Cheret's earliest known poster, dated 1858, is for the theatre, and from there he went on to prepare some 500 posters for various theatres, cabarets, music-halls, individual performers and shows of every description. The Folies-Bergere was one of his frequent clients for three decades (60 posters) and so were the Alcazar, the Ambassadeurs, the Moulin Rouge, the Hippodrome and the Musee Grevin. Some of his happiest and most popular designs are in this category. He could exercise his uncanny ability to capture the dynamics of the stage in the movement of dancers, mimes and acrobats" (Rennert, PAI-VII)