Gianguir rebelled against his father and was disowned: he lost his right to the throne, which is now promised to his son Cosrovio. Gianguir married Zama, a woman of humble birth who convinced him to marry her daughter Miraca to Cosrovio. Her brother Asaf is the sultan’s favourite. Cosrovio turns down this proposal because he is in love with Alinda (the princess Semira, Gianguir’s sworn enemy); she convinces him to reclaim the throne bequeathed by his grandfather and take up arms against his father. His friend Mahobet, the captain of the guards, tries to remind him of his duty. Cosrovio and Asaf fight before Gianguir’s eyes. To avenge himself after being humiliated, Asaf tells Semira that Cosrovio will marry Miraca; she promises him her love out of jealousy. When ordered to either marry Miraca or to surrender and die, Cosrovio takes up arms: Gianguir finds out about this betrayal and demands that Mahobet’s head be brought to him for having helped his son. Mahobet saves himself by taking Gianguir hostage. He is accused of high treason and Gianguir deprives him of his rank, even though Agra is in danger. The army is handed to Asaf. Semira, using the name Alinda, feigns cooperation: she promises that she will marry Asaf and denounces the enemies of the kingdom to set herself free. Gianguir tells Cosrovio that Alinda is in love with another man. Cosrovio thinks that she has betrayed him, but as soon as Alinda is free, she reveals that Semira will not keep the promises made by Alinda, and that she is Cosrovio’s wife. The two lovers reunite. Semira sends her future husband to the battlefield and Asaf is defeated: when all seems lost for the king, Gianguir arrives—Mahobet has freed him. Zama tries to convince him to forgive his son, and Mahobet says that a rebellion will start if he kills him. At the very last moment, Gianguir chooses to be magnanimous: Semira walks in on the father and son reconciling. She asks to be killed at the same time as her husband, but Gianguir spares them on Zama’s advice. He declares her sultan’s wife and marries Semira and Cosrovio. The choir celebrates this beautiful day.

String marionette

Not specified

Zeno Apostolo

Italy

Venice

Printed

Succession

Rebellion

Forced marriage

Favourite

Tyrant

Heroic

Melodramatic

Epic

Gianguir, 1748 (title page)

Italian

Emperor

Prince

Princess

Wife

Brother

Captain

Confident

Music

Chorus

Play in verse

Love story

Public announcement

Crowd

Duel scene

Love rivalry

Parade

Off-stage combat

Disguised character (false identity)

Fight

Arrest scene

Revelation

Final wedding

Gianguir

The Plumcake family arrives in Biskra. The wedding of their daughter, Miss Maud, will happen in the Sahara; however, their arrival in the oasis of merrymaking is delayed: they cross paths with a lion and get lost; a caravan comes by and saves the lost family. The spectacular ceremony can finally take place: the procession and dances begin.

Shadow theatre

Switzerland

Geneva

Printed summary

Orientalism

Sahara

Caravan (travellers)

Algerian infantry

Algeria

Party

Ouled Naïl (Algerian nomadic tribe)

Desert

Wedding

Comical

Dramatic

Maurice Potter, engraving advertising the Théâtre du Sapajou, 1896.

French

English man

Lion

Goat

Arab

Berber

Husband

Algerian

Soldier

Colonial troop

Horserider

Dancer

Barker

Song

Dance

Le Mariage au désert

The Wedding in the desert

A teacher recounts the feats of the Swiss army to his students. He begins with the Helvetians’ victory against the Romans, then mentions Guillaume Tell’s feats. The students are thrilled. He relates the battle of Sempach, Morat, and Marignano, then the Napoleonic occupation. The teacher ends his class by praising the generals Dufour and Herzog’s key role in the confederal construction of modern Switzerland.

All audiences

Printed outline

Iconic battles

People and history

Capitulation

History lesson

Nationalism

Didactic

Shadow figure by Louis Dunki for L‘Armée suisse à travers les âges, published in Le Sapajou.

Teacher

Pupil

Leader

Roman

Guillaume Tell

Hermann Gessler

Swiss

Charles the Bold

Napoleon

General

Classroom scene

Battlefield scene

L'Armée suisse à travers les âges

The Swiss army through the ages

Guignol tells the Directeur (Director) that he thinks highly of theatre. He asks to be introduced to the audience, and jokes with him about being made of wood. Ubu kills the king Venceslas. The Queen dies, and the Ombre (Shadow) of one of her ancestors gives the young prince Bougrelas a sword, so that he can avenge his father. Ubu robs and slaughters Nobles, dismisses the judges and makes them all fall through the trapdoor. Ubu goes fight the Russian army, and Mère Ubu (Mother Ubu) and her accomplice Giron try to steal his treasures while he is away. On the battlefield, Ubu is chased out by the Russian army led by the Tzar. An Ours (bear) attacks general Lascy and prevails. In the meantime, Ubu has taken shelter in a tree. Mère Ubu meets her husband and they both prepare to leave for France. But Bougrelas appears and has them arrested by the Gendarmes (Police), and asks for them to locked up in France and for Père Ubu (Father Ubu)’s brain to be removed.

Glove-puppet

Jarry Alfred

France

Paris

Regicide

Tyranny

Theft

Voracity

Treasure

Slaughter

Army

Revenge

Police (French gendarmerie)

Grotesque

Farcical

Ubu's puppet in Ubu sur la butte, 1901.

Father Ubu

Mother Ubu

Queen

Ghost

Noble

Clerk

Magistrato

Counselor

Financier

Russian

Pole

Bear

Horse

Constable

Prologue

Blow-with-a-stick

Murder on stage

Apparition of a ghost

Plot scene

Chase

Fight with an animal

Final song

Ubu sur la butte

Ubu on the hilllock

Two presenters (Tall Ringmaster and Blue Ringmaster) take turns announcing different acts. A variety of characters enter the scene while two clowns, Tuff and Cream, exchange jokes and riddles. In the second part, horsemen from around the world and from every era ride in one by one.

Toy theatre

Young audiences

Ireland

Strete

Circus

Joke

Show

Clown

Exoticism

English

Announcer

Singer

Comic distortion of language

Onct More's First Circus

Le Premier cirque d'Onct More

Blind Boy, Cockatrice, and Columbus the Parrot are headed to Rome. The Magic Donkey refuses to walk because it is afraid of Cockatrice’s face, and until he wears a mask. At a crossroads where three different roads lead to Rome, they each decide to follow a different path and agree to meet at the Royal George, an inn. Columbus, disguised as a rich traveller, gets to the inn first. He uses the Magic Table to gift a delightful meal to all customers. After this meal, Columbus goes to sleep, and Oward, the innkeeper, switches the Magic Table with an ordinary one. In the morning, Columbus receives a telegram from the King of Rome, who is also the King of Europe, inviting him to his palace to meet his daughter, Princess Razzlemond, and to marry her. At court, Columbus tries to make another feast appear but fails. The innkeeper complains about his table being stolen, and Columbus is sent to prison.

Gianguir

Le Mariage au désert

L'Armée suisse à travers les âges

Ubu sur la butte

Onct More's First Circus

The Roman Adventure - Part One

The Magic Table