Ballet pantomime in two acts and three scenes premiered on 1st April 1846 at the Théâtre de l’Académie Royale de Musique, Paris

Choreography: Joseph Mazilier

Music: Édouard Deldevez

Premiers Rôles

Paquita: Carlotta Grisi

Lucien d’Hervilly: Lucien Petipa

Iñigo: M Élie

Don Lopez de Mendoza: M Coralli

Dona Séraphina: Zélie Pierson

Plot

Summary

Acte 1

The first act takes place in the gypsy camp in the Valley of the Bulls where the French General Comte d’Hervilly and his wife and son Lucien are unveiling a new memorial for the General’s brother the Comte d’Hervilly and his wife and daughter, who were assassinated by bandits years before. Also attending the unveiling is the corrupt Spanish Governor Don Lopez de Mendoza and his daughter Serafina. General d’Hervilly proposes a marriage between Lucien and Serafina, which Serafina delightfully accepts, but Lucien is reluctant because he is not in love with her. Don Lopez de Mendoza agrees to the marriage, but is really against it because he secretly wants the young Lucien dead. When the nobles exit, the gypsies enter, led by their ruthless chief Iñigo, and last to arrive is the beautiful Paquita while picking flowers. Iñigo scolds her for being late, but then tries to win her over with his declarations of love, which Paquita rejects with contempt. In a mime scene, Paquita explains that Iñigo mistreats her by always forcing her to dance for money and she remembers that she was very young; her parents were murdered, revealing a miniature portrait of her father that she has always had. The nobles then return and Iñigo rounds up the gypsies to dance for them, presenting some very colourful Spanish and gypsy dances, including a Pas des Manteaux and a Pas des Éventails.

After the first set of dances, Iñigo orders Paquita to collect money from the guests and as she passes the hat around, she meets Lucien and it is love at first sight. However, Paquita then gets into an argument with Iñigo, who is not happy with the result of the money collection, but Lucien intervenes, stopping Iñigo from hitting Paquita. In the confusion, Paquita drops the miniature portrait of her father, which Iñigo finds and steals. Realising she has lost her father’s portrait, Paquita is distraught, but Lucien comforts her and asks her to dance, a request she joyfully accepts. 

After the dancing, the nobles leave, but the Governor stays behind and instructs Iñigo to do away with Lucien, an instruction that Iñigo accepts. Lucien returns to see Paquita and asks her to leave her gypsy life and attend a great ball that his parents are holding at their residence, but, though she is moved, she refuses because of his betrothal and their differences in social status, prompting Lucien to declare his love for her. However, Iñigo witnesses the rendezvous and informs the Governor and they decide to use Paquita as bait to lure Lucien into a deadly trap. They order one of the gypsy girls to give a flower to Lucien, telling him it is from Paquita and a message to meet her in her lodgings.

Acte 2

Scène 1

The action takes place in Paquita’s lodging.

Paquita is alone thinking of Lucien, when suddenly, she is disturbed by the entrance of Iñigo and a masked stranger. Paquita hides and when the stranger removes his mask, she is shocked to recognise him as the Governor, but even more so when she overhears that the two men have lured Lucien to the lodging so they may kill him. Iñigo explains that he will offer Lucien a glass of drugged wine and when Lucien is unconscious, several of the gypsies will emerge from the fireplace, the wall of which is constructed to swivel and reveal a secret entrance, and kill him. The Governor pays Iñigo for his services and leaves, while Iñigo summons several of the gypsies and explains the plot to them. Paquita tries to leave, but Iñigo and the others catch her, but she assures them she knows nothing of what is going on. Lucien arrives and Paquita tries in vain to warn him of the murder plot. Iñigo invites him to sit and have some food and wine and orders Paquita to lay the table. Iñigo then fills Lucien’s glass with the drugged wine, but Paquita quickly causes a distraction that enables her to switch the glasses when neither Iñigo or Lucien are looking. As the two men continue to drink, Paquita dances to entertain them and the drug begins to take its effect on Iñigo. When he passes out, he drops Paquita’s miniature portrait, which she retrieves. Knowing that the other gypsies might catch them, they cover the unconscious Iñigo in Lucien’s cloak and make their escape through the secret entrance in the fireplace. At that moment, the gypsies enter and find the unconscious individual, unaware that it is Iñigo, and stab him to death, only realising their mistake too late.

Scène 2

The scene takes place at a French ball at General d’Hervilly’s palace and opens with a contredanse francaise, a waltz and a gavotte. The ball is being held in honour of the late Comte d’Hervilly, whose portrait is on display, and the guests comprise of French and Spanish nobles. Suddenly, Lucien and Paquita burst in and Lucien tells everyone of the attempt on his life and how Paquita saved him. He asks her to marry him, but she refuses because he is noble and she is a mere gypsy. Upon seeing the Governor, Paquita reveals to all that it was he who orchestrated the murder plot, recounting all she witnessed at her lodging. The Governor is arrested and Serafina flees in distress. Before Paquita can leave, she notices the portrait of the Comte d’Hervilly and recognises him as the same man in her father’s miniature portrait. The truth is finally revealed – Paquita is the long-lost daughter of Lucien’s uncle, who was thought by everyone to be dead; her parents were murdered by the gypsies, who took the young Paquita in and raised her as one of their own. Now, there are no obstacles standing in the way of Paquita marrying Lucien and the General blesses their marriage. The ball becomes a celebration to celebrate the homecoming of Paquita. After a series of dances, the ballet is brought to a close with a waltz entitled the Queen of Prussia waltz.

History

Original Production

Paquita is a ballet in two acts and three scenes originally choreographed by Joseph Mazilier to music by Édouard Deldevez for the celebrated Carlotta Grisi. Paul Foucher received royalties as librettist and the ballet was first presented at the Salle Le Peletier on 1 April 1846. It was retained in the repertory of the Opéra until 1851, following which the full length ballet would not be performed there until Pierre Lacotte’s 2001 production, which is still in the current repertory of the Paris Opéra. 

A point of interest is the Pas des Tambourins of the first act. Following the tradition of creating pas to showcase the ballerina’s talents, a pas was created for Grisi in the first act. The pas had several names, being referred to as the Pas de Paquita by the balletmaster Henri Justamant, the Pas des Tambourins by the critic Fiorentino, the Pas de Mme Carlotta Grisi in the surviving musical scores and as the Bolero de Carlotta Grisi by Escudier in La France musicale. The pas originally featured Paquita and four of her friends (originally two ladies and two men, called “mayos”) dancing with their tambourines to entertain the noble guests and further enhanced Lucien’s fascination with Paquita. 

By the 1851 revival for Flora Fabri, the pas had been revised to a Pas de Sept, featuring Paquita supported by four ladies and two men. However, it is unclear if the 1851 Pas de Sept was indeed an expansion of Grisi’s 1846 Pas de Cinq, as it could just as likely be a later interpolation. By the time of the ballet’s notation in Russia (1904 with Anna Pavlova in the title rôle) the pas had become known as the Pas de Sept Bohémiennes or the Pas de Carlotta, and was now danced by Paquita and six of her female friends. The notated version of the Pas de Sept Bohémiennes likely dates to Marius Petipa’s definitive 1882 revival for Ekaterina Vazem, as it would likely have been for Vazem that he would have revised the original pas.

Selected Revivals

3 June 1846

Location: Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London

Staged by Mr Silvain for Grisi. 

The critic for The Times stated:

“Considered as a drama, this is a neat piece, without much novelty…the ballet is free from heaviness, while the ball scene, with which it concludes, is excellently mounted, and affords a scope for some admirable dancing. Perhaps it would not be wrong to reckon this scene as a substantial part of the ballet, and the rest as a sort of preface.

Among the pas d’ensemble may be mentioned a very clever one called the Pas des Manteaux, danced by the peasants. One would think that all groups depending upon the arrangement of scarves, and other spreading articles of attire, had been exhausted, but the thick red mantle now folded round the figure, now extended wide is a new material, and is turned to account.

[…]

The vivacity and piquancy with which she [Grisi] danced the gypsy chief into a stupor, after he had swallowed the opiate, was inimitable, while the pas seul in the ballroom, with which the whole ballet concluded, was an admirable specimen of brilliancy in her art. The broad sweeping bounds, the little sparkling steps, all were given to perfection. The last ‘variation’ of this pas seul was rapturously encored by the whole house; and the fair danseuse was tumultuously called for after the fall of the curtain.”

8 October [O.S. 26 September] 1847

Location: Imperial Bolshoi Kameny Theatre, St Petersburg

Staged for Yelena Andreyanova.

15 December 1847

Location: Königliches Hoftheater, Stuttgart

Staged by Johann Fenzl in three acts as Paquitta. For this production, the names of the characters were changed, Lucien d’Hervilly became Don Eugenio de Cartamo, Iñigo became the nameless gypsy captain, Don Lopez de Mendoza became Don Cesar and Dona Séraphina became Donna Isabella. The plot was revised and the score was heavily revised and adapted by Herr Kühner.

The revised plot is as follows:

Don Rodrigo de Cartamo wishes to wed Donna Isabella to his nephew, Don Eugenio. On the day of the engagement, which takes place during a splendid celebration, Don Cesar, Donna Isabella’s secret lover, acting in agreement with her, seeks to bribe a nearby settled gypsy captain with gold to murder Don Eugenio, who had hired him and his troupe to glorify the festival.

The gypsy captain accepts the proposal; however, Paquitta, who has overheard the plan, saves Don Eugenio and flees with him to the castle. There, she uncovers everything, and the criminals are handed over to justice.

Don Rodrigo recognises the image of his late wife in the locket that Paquitta presents to him as the sole inheritance from her parents. This reveals that Paquitta is actually Don Rodrigo’s stolen daughter. As she is of noble birth, Don Eugenio receives her as his wife, and the wedding celebration is carried out.

The revised dances are as follows:

1. Grosser-Zigenner-Gruppen-Tanz (Grand Gypsy Group Dance) – danced by two ladies, one man and the corps de ballet, potentially a version of the Pas des Manteaux
2. Aragonnaise –  danced by a couple
3. Spanischer Pas de Deux – danced by Paquitta and Don Eugenio
4. Spanische Salon-Quadrille – danced by Donna Isabella, Don Cesar and the corps de ballet, potentially versions of the Contredanses Françaises and/or the Gavotte de Vestris
5. Zappitatto – Spanischer Nationaltanz – danced by a couple and the corps de ballet
6. Grand Pas de Trois Serieux – danced by Paquitta and an unnamed couple
7. Waffen-und Fahnenspiel (Weapon and Flag Display) combined with a large battle display

22 December 1848

Location: Nationaltheater, Munich 

Staged by Johann Fenzl in two acts and three scenes for Frl. Holler, a restaging of the revised Stuttgart version. 

1848

Location: Imperial Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow

Staged by Marius Petipa for Yelena Andreyanova. Petipa portrayed the rôle of Lucien. 

1848

Location: Teatro di San Carlo, Naples

Staged by Signor Patipà (likely an Italianised version of Petipa, potentially referring to Lucien Petipa, the original Lucien, or possibly to his brother Marius Petipa or father Jean Petipa) for Louise Fitzjames. The ballet was staged in three acts with Niccola Fusco as her Lucien. 

For this production, the first scene seems to have included three dances: a Danse Caractéristique danced by the corps de ballet (presumably a version of the Pas des Manteaux) and two pas for Fitzjames, Las Malaghenas and La Castigliana. One of the latter two pas was likely a replacement for or reworking of the Pas des Tambourins.

The third scene seems to have included a new Pas de Trois arranged by Louis Mérante set to new music by Count Gabrielli, which he danced with Fitzjames and Signora Lavaggi. This pas presumably replaced Grisi’s Pas Seul.

12 March 1851

Location: Théâtre de l’Académie Nationale de Musique, Paris

Staged for Flora Fabri with Louis Mérante as her Lucien.

Autumn 1852

Location: Teatro alla Scala, Milan

Staged by Giovanni Galzerani for Amalia Ferraris with Effisio Catte as her Lucien.  

9 January 1882 [O.S. 27 December 1881]

Location: Imperial Bolshoi Kameny Theatre, St Petersburg

Staged by Petipa for Ekaterina Vazem with Pavel Gerdt as her Lucien. Ludwig Minkus revised the score and it was for this revival that the famous Mazurka des Enfants and Grand Pas Classique were added to the third act to the music of Minkus. Minkus also revised the Pas de Trois of the first act. The Grand Pas Classique in particular has survived as a celebrated independent piece of choreography.

London Revivals

1900 Revival

In 1900 the ballet was revived at Her Majesty’s Theatre.

London had not seen Paquita since Grisi’s day. Philip Jenson, the theatre’s under-conductor and unofficial ballet composer, was commissioned to revise and supplement the score by Leonardo Tavano, the balletmaster of the theatre. Tavano aimed to capitalise on the successful revival of Catarina, which he staged the previous year in 1899. However, during the creation process François Ambrosiny was engaged as balletmaster. This was not without Tavano’s knowledge, as he had expressed his wishes to leave and had agreed to stay on until a replacement could be found. 

Once Ambrosiny was confirmed, Tavano handed over the revival Paquita to him. Ambrosiny proceeded with the revival, picking up much where his predecessor had left off. As such, the choreography of the ballet was jointly credited to both men, with Act 1 being credited to Tavano and Act 2 to Ambrosiny.

A point of note is that the 1900 revival was the first time the ballet had been seen in Britain since Grisi’s day. This has somewhat confused modern scholars, as though William Thompson revived several of Grisi’s ballets at His Majesty’s Theatre and later at Covent Garden (Esmeralda in 1878, Giselle in 1879 and The Devil to Pay in 1883 among others) he did not ever revive Paquita. This omission has since puzzled scholars and Thompson’s reasons for neglecting Paquita are still unknown to us today. 

It can safely be assumed that Thompson was aware of the ballet, as Thompson revived other works which had been created for Grisi. Some have suggested that Thompson was unable to obtain the score for Paquita, but judging by other less well known scores he was able to obtain from the Opéra, this would also seem unlikely. 

This led modern scholars to propose two possible reasons for the omission: either Thompson did not personally like the ballet or Thompson did not believe that he had a danseuse who could do the rôle justice. The former is more difficult to support, as Thompson clearly had an appreciation for the Romantic ballets, given how many of them he revived, and Paquita was one of the more successful creations of the era. Some scholars even speculate that had Thompson not retired “prematurely” in 1896 (which was brought about by several different reasons), he may have likely revived the ballet. Indeed, Thompson, though broadly faithful to the originals, was not above editing parts he did not like, so it is difficult to say that he rejected the ballet on grounds of plot.

The latter, though, is the more interesting and thought-provoking theory. Thompson’s so-called late period (1889-1896) was largely dominated by two première dansueses: Marta Draeger and Sarah Nicholson. Draeger was less at home in Grisi’s ballets; her 1888 attempt at Giselle was considered unsuccessful but her 1891 portrayal of Béatrix in The Beauty of Ghent was celebrated. However, her success in the latter was likely due to Thompson’s reimagining of the ballet as a spectacle in the modern Classical fashion, sharing only the music and action of its Romantic origins. Nicholson, on the other hand, was quite at home in the Grisi’s rôles and the Romantic in general, and Thompson revived The Peri (1892), The Fairies’ Goddaughter (1893) and The Sylph (1895) for her. 

Judging by her other rôles, Nicholson would arguably have made a good Paquita, as she danced Jovita in the 1896 revival of The Buccaneers, a ballet which makes similar dramatic demands of the danseuse to Paquita. As stated, Thompson would never revive Paquita, though some have argued that had he stayed on longer than 1896 he would have done so for Nicholson. His successor, Richard Hague, made no move to revive the ballet, and so Her Majesty’s Theatre became the first British theatre to stage the ballet since Grisi’s day. 

Rôles

TBC

Musical Revisions

A new Variation was composed for the Pas de Trois of the first act. Two variations of Deldevez’s pas were retained, though in a different order. 

A new Variation was added for Paquita in the Pas des Tambourins (as it was decided to be named). It followed the Parisian tradition of Paquita being supported by two ladies and two men, making the pas a Pas de Cinq. 

A short Entr’acte was added to cover the scene change between the two scenes of the second act.

Of the original dances of the Divertissement of the second scene of the second act, only the two valses were retained. These were the Valse des Hussards, which was retained as a waltz for the corps de ballet and the Valse de la Reine de Prusse, which was retained as final general dance. 

The other two original dances (the Pas des Deux Femmes and La Valse for Grisi and Petipa) were cut, with two new dances added to the second scene of the second act in their place. The first of these was the Boléro, a character dance performed by four couples of dancers, and the second was a Grand Pas de Deux for Paquita and Lucien.

Résumé des Scènes et Danses

Acte 1

1) Introduction

2) Scène 1re

3) Scène 2e

4) Scène 3e

5) Scène 4e – Bohémienne

6) Scène 5e

7) Scène 6e

8) Scène 7e

9) Scène 8e – Entrée des Nobles

10) Fanfare

11) Pas de Trois

a) Entrée 

b) Variation I

c) Variation II

d) Variation III

e) Coda

12) Pas des Manteaux

13) Scène 9e

14) Pas des Tambourins (Pas de Cinq)

a) Entrée

b) Allegretto

c) Variation de Paquita

d) Coda

15) Scène 10e – Après le Pas

16) Scène 11e

17) Scène Finale

Acte 2

Scène 1

18) Entr’acte

19) Scène 1re

20) Scène 2e

21) Scène 3e

22) Scène 4e 

23) Scène 5e

24) Scène 6e

25) Scène 7e

26) Cachucha de Paquita 

27) Scène Finale

Scène 2

28) Entr’acte

29) Contredanses Françaises

a) Contredanse I

b) Contredanse II

30) Scène 9e – Entrée du Générale

31) Gavotte de Vestris

32) Scène 10e – Après de la Danse

Divertissement

33) Valse des Hussards

34) Boléro – Danse de Caractère

35) Grand Pas de Deux

a) Adage

b) Variation de Lucien

c) Variation de Paquita

d) Coda

36) Valse de La Reine de Prusse

37) Scène Finale