Design for a Stage Set at the Opéra, Paris 1830 - 1890

Curator: Eugène Cicéri’s "Design for a Stage Set at the Opéra, Paris," dating roughly from 1830 to 1890, combines etching and pencil to capture a slice of theatrical architecture. I am curious, what’s your initial reaction? Editor: Oh, there's something about its precision, yet, it's also got this kind of wistful, faded glory feeling, like a beautiful ghost from an opera long past. I feel like singing a lament already. Curator: Well, stage design was integral to opera’s spectacle, influencing set construction, material choices, and labor division behind the scenes. Cícéri, as a renowned designer, held significant sway. He would dictate all of those key elements that formed the audience's visual experience. Editor: Totally! Looking at this makes me think about the layers and layers of work, both artistic and really hands-on, that went into putting on a grand opera production back then. Like, think of the carpenters, the painters, the prop makers. They all took cues from these design blueprints! This piece is about far more than just set-design. Curator: Absolutely. Moreover, the cityscape presented here subtly reflects the urban development sweeping through Paris during that era. Note the architectural details, their potential symbolism reflecting societal changes. Etching, with its capacity for detailed reproduction, made such designs accessible to wider workshops. Editor: You know, there’s something about the muted tones, the precise lines of the pencil. And then, knowing it’s an etching as well, meant for mass production… It makes you consider how "high art" trickled down, shaping the aesthetic landscape of popular entertainment. A direct reflection on culture itself. Curator: Exactly. Mass consumption reshaped artistic practices; Cícéri was navigating that shift, creating designs adaptable across various productions. So a seemingly simple stage set holds significant insights. Editor: It’s incredible when you think about it, this somewhat faded etching offers a glimpse of the whole socioeconomic machine working just beneath the velvet curtain. The magic comes from somewhere, right? Curator: Precisely. A humble, preliminary document becomes a rich commentary. Editor: Yeah. It really shifts your perspective to think of it like that. Thanks.