In the prologue, Talia (Thalia) and Urania announce an inspiring story. Baldassara, a successful actress admired by Alvaro and Rodrigo, is tormented: as she performs the role of Clorinda in the company of Beatrice, Lisa, and Biscotto in a theatrical adaptation of La Gerusalemme Liberata by Torquato Tasso, she is so disturbed that she misses her cue. Baldassara understands that her torment comes from the fact that, while she plays the role of a young Christian, she has turned a deaf ear to the calls of God. Right in the middle of the performance, she leaves to exile herself in the desert, pursued by Biscotto and Lisa, who attempt to deter her from her goal. Beatrice, however, has only contempt for her rival; the other actors apologize to the public, who seem enthusiastic at the performance of who they call the "Comica del Cielo" (the Actress from the Heavens). During her exile, Baldassara discovers the beauty in solitude, while Lisa and Biscotto see only horror. She refuses their pleas to return to Valenza. The Demon, disguised as a hunter, tempts Alvaro, who has left in search of his lover: the young man finds Baldassara, who implores him to devote his life to God. In despair, he leaves to throw himself from a cliff. Baldassara tries to stop him, but a boulder in the form of a cross intervenes. Baldassara kneels before the power of the Divine. Biscotto, in hermit's robes, decides to stay at her side despite objections from Lisa. During her slumber, the Demon sends Baldassara temptations: upon her wake, she repels him with a Christian symbol, which breaks the spell. Biscotto, however, regardless of Lisa's warnings, tastes a cake from the Demon: the bitterness in his mouth remains, but he succeeds in chasing the Demon away. Act II ends with a ballet. Beatrice arrives in the desert after the death of Tafer, who she followed across the oceans and who was defeated by Rodrigo. In a nocturnal scene, Baldassara and Biscotto discover Beatrice and successfully dissuade her from killing herself. Rodrigo, arriving mid-reunion, wants to kill Beatrice to avenge her infidelity. Baldassara interjects and commands him to turn toward God. After these multiple conversions Penitenza (Penitence) appears to Baldassara to bring her her rewards; she confronts the Demon and triumphs over him. Since Alvaro hopes to regain his good graces with the help of Lisa, he finds Baldassara dead, in the midst of a choir of angels and happy souls.

"On foot and by rod" puppet

Marionette with counterweight

Not specified

Spain

Madrid

Italy

Rome

Printed

Conversion

Desert

Hermit

Actress

Miracle

Edifying

Heroic

Religious

Epic

Italian

La Conversione di Santa Baldassarra Comica Spagnuola; La Comica celeste

ovvero La Baldassara

Thalie

Muse

Uranie

Lover (man)

King

Counselor

Servant

Maid

Devil

Soldier

Spectator

Choir

Angel

Play in verse

Chorus

Interlude

Prologue

Theatre within the theatre

Crowd

Sleeping character

Soliloquy

Night scene

Revelation

Failed suicide

Apparition of the Devil

Pact with the devil

Allegory

Death on stage

Flying machine

Apotheosis

Ascent to heaven

Apparition of an angel

La Comica del Cielo

The Actress from the Heavens

In Cassara, the Roman emperor Diocletiano wishes to kill all Christians. However, a Christian woman – Dorothea – lives in his court, and her father was promised protection by the emperor. The emperor’s most prominent warlords are Duosar and Theophil. Duosar is in love with Dorothea, while Theophil wishes to execute her for being a Christian. The ambitious Theophil feels looked down on by the emperor, who he thinks prefers Duosar, and he looks for a way to get rid of his young rival. When Hano the Moor tells him about Duosar’s scheme, Theopil believes that he is close to achieving his goal. Duosar means to save Dorothea and to join the Christian army. But the emperor does not want to let his favourite major go, and he considers another solution: if Theophil’s daughter, Antafolia, could convert Dorothea, the emperor would marry Antafolia, and Duosar would marry Dorothea. But after talking with Dorothea, Antafolia knocks down the statue of Jupiter, converts to Christianity and is killed by her own father. Duosar obtains Dorothea’s pardon from the emperor, but he is too late to prevent her execution. He then stabs himself to death. When it turns out that the Moor is the devil, Theophil calls for help and is rescued by a heavenly apparition. He is unstrung and converts. The high priest follows his example and adopts the Christian faith too, so do all the priests. Only the emperor still believes in his gods and begs them to send him a sign. When the execution room collapses, Diocletiano is disillusioned and kills himself using his own sword.

String marionette

Germany

Christianity

Paganism

Martyrdom

Ancient history

Saints

Dramatic

Theaterzettel von Carl Eberle, Breslau, 21.11.1834

German

Das Opferfest oder die Zerstörung von Cassara,
Das unterbrochene Opferfest,
Die Zerstörung von Cassara,
Diocletiano oder Das Braminen-Fest,
Das Braminen-Fest oder die Zerstörung von Cassara

Diocletian

Commanding officer

Martyr

Moorish

Priest

Kasperl

Asmodeus

Monologue

Disguise

Beheading

Metamorphosis

Murder on stage

Suicide on stage

Fire

Thunderbolt

Glory

Die Enthauptung der Heiligen Dorothea

The beheading of Saint Dorothy

Polichinelle’s wife has just died, and he asks his Compère (Companion) if he would like to marry him. The Compère refuses and suggests that Polichinelle buy a girl from Bonhomme Tatepoule – someone who sells girls for a living. Compère blindfolds Polichinelle so that he plays blind man’ buff and chooses a girl this way. Instead, Polichinelle catches a butterfly. A demon comes, dressed as a bundle of sticks, and Polichinelle grabs him. When he recovers his sight, Polichinelle gives up on his plan to remarry. Men and women peasants dance at the end of the play.

Rod and string marionette

France

Paris

Wedding

Prospecting

Trade

Trap

Comical

Farcical

French

Polichinelle

The Interpreter

Butterfly

Peasant (man)

Peasant (female)

Misunderstanding

Blind character

Ballet

Dialogue with a character in the audience

Polichinelle colin-maillard

Polichinelle playing blind man's buff

The shepherd Floritan (Floridan) is in love with the shepherdess Dorinda, but she tells him that she will only answer to his love if he brings her water from a magical cave. Instead of doing it himself, Floritan sends his servant Hans (Kasper) to fetch that water. As a reward, he assures Hans that he will give him a trousseau so that he can marry Dorinda’s servant, Gretel. The latter has to prepare a jar to fetch water, but she refuses to give it to Hans because she thinks he is unfaithful. In fact, Hans is planning on marrying Dorinda if his adventure is a success. Hans and Floritan manage to get to the cave, each independently, but Floritan is scared and runs away. Karikux, the magician, denies entry to the cave to Hans, a devil breaks his pot, then he is eventually chased away by shrews. Hans tells his story, exaggerating it, to Floritan. Floritan gives up on going back to the cave to get water. Instead, Dorinda challenges him to kill a monster that is eating her sheep and goats. Hans, to whom Floritan has again promised money for his wedding, kills the monster for his master. He demands that Dorinda marry him, but she does not care about who has killed the monster, because she is, in fact, in love with Floritan, and with him only. Therefore, Dorinda gets married to Floritan, and Hans to Gretel.

All audiences

Leipzig

Typewriting

Monster

Magic

Test

Cave

Jealousy

Love

Fantasy

Pastoral

Theaterzettel von Louis Regel aus Donndorf, Roßla am Harz um 1880

Sheperherdess

Shepherd

Farmhand

Magician

Ghost

Love story

Apparition

Song

Final wedding

Der Gang zur Zauberhöhle

The path to the magical cave

The governor of Barcelona, Don Pietro, banishes Don Juan on behalf of the king of Spain, and he refuses to let him marry his daughter – whom he offers to his rival Don Philippo. Jealous, Don Juan tries to abduct Donna Marillis just as Don Philippo is about to take her to a ball – since it is carnival time. However, he is caught by Don Pietro, kills him and then flees with his servant Hans Wurst. In the woods, they meet a hermit whom Don Juan kills in order to steal his trousers. Thus disguised, he also murders Don Philippo, who went after him. The two fugitives reach a first inn, then a second one, where Don Juan invites the statue of Don Pietro, which is standing not far. When Don Pietro’s ghost arrives, Don Juan and Hans Wurst are already eating the salad. The statue summons its murderer at midnight, in the cemetery, and hands out its hand to take him to Hell.

Augsburg

Seducer

Unwelcome seducer

Assassination

Murder

Serial murder

Phantom

Revenant

Morality

Aristocracy

Nobility

Valet

Carnival

Augsburger Don Juan-Spiel

Don Juan

Don Pietro

Don Filippo

Hanswurst

Donna Marillis

Lipperl

Guard

Landlady

Statue

Final intervention of the devil

Letter

Inn scene

Comical regional accent

Bawdy equivocation

Don Juan und Don Pietro, oder das Steinerne-Todten-Gastmahl

Don Juan and Don Pietro, or the gruesome Feast of stone

Faust leads a destitute life as a scholar, until he lay hands on a book of black magic. He then sells his soul to the devil Mefistofeles, in exchange for services. Demons also appear to Kasper, whom Faust’s famulus – Wagner – has recently hired. But Kasper adamantly refuses to sell himself to the devil. Mefistofeles takes Faust and Kasper to Parma to lead a loose life. After living in luxury for twelve years, Faust is abandoned by Wagner, who disapproves of his way of life. Faust repents, but eventually gives in to carnal temptation when Mefistofeles presents him the fair Helen, whom he knew in Ancient Greece. Everyone rejects Faust. Kasper, now a night watchman, finds him out in the street within curfew hours and wants to throw him behind bars. But Faust’s final hour has come, and he is taken away by demons.

Geisselbrecht Johann Georg

University

Scholar

Wittenberg

Philosopher's stone

Foreign languages

Laziness

Sorcery

Necromancy

Perlike

Middle Ages

Crow

Pluto

Coffee

Penitence

Eroticism

Eternal punishment

Tragic

Burlesque

Comödie vom D. Faust ; Schauspiel von dem Doctor Faust

Oder : Der große Negromantist

Faust

Christoph Wagner

Mephistopheles

Auerhahn

Vizibuzli

Helen of Troy

Night watchman

Metadiscourse on puppet theatre

Tragic irony

Macaronism

Lazzi

Word for another

Repetition of a word

Dream

Versified passages

Doctor Faust

Spring is cheering the birds and people up: a child is amazed to see a butterfly take flight, young boys are playing with a kite, and the gravedigger, envious, admires a heron in the sky. His neighbour, a blacksmith, tells him that his wings are ready. He tries in vain to talk him out of his dream of flying. Elsbeth despairs at her husband’s fixation and relates the gravedigger’s dream; the latter is particularly gloomy and worries Elsbeth. Meanwhile, the gardener, who is in love with Elsbeth, easily removes his naïve rival, the poet Blumenstengel (literally, Flower stem) : the latter believes that he has temporarily been transformed into an attractive sunflower. At night, the gravedigger tries over and over to take flight; he invokes the moon and stars before yielding to the devil’s proposal… A few days later, the gardener and the young Elsbeth bill and coo as they praise the flowers of springs; then, devastated, the gravedigger’s wife relates that her husband, who has been missing for some time, appeared to her during the night and ordered her to die after one final and icy kiss. Two graves were dug. At night, the gravedigger calls Death, who takes a long time to come. When the clock strikes midnight, he hurries inside his house with a knife. The following day, it is revealed that he has killed his wife and daughter; he is denounced and sentenced to hang. The gardener mourns Elsbeth and the crowd laments the gravedigger’s madness.

Kerner Justinus

Der Totengräber von Feldberg

The Gravedigger of Feldberg