Bertrand and Gauville Reassess Picasso's Parade
Anne Bertrand and Hervé Gauville's book 'Parade, D'une certaine manière' reexamines the 1917 ballet 'Parade' at the Théâtre du Châtelet, focusing on its set design beyond Picasso's famous curtain. The authors argue that the scandal was not due to its cubist bric-à-brac but to its unprecedented coherence, a 'collage' that confused audiences who mistook the curtain for the set and the parade for the spectacle. Cocteau, aiming to astonish Diaghilev, replaced a planned collaboration with Stravinsky on 'David' with this project, enlisting Satie for music and Picasso for design. The choreographer Massine was miscredited on the poster. Satie's 'musique d'ameublement' served as a background, though it was more significant. The book restores depth to the history of this 'realist ballet' and the scandal it provoked.
Key facts
- Book by Anne Bertrand and Hervé Gauville titled 'Parade, D'une certaine manière'
- Focuses on the 1917 ballet 'Parade' at Théâtre du Châtelet
- Picasso painted the stage curtain, often exhibited and documented
- Original set known only from a bad photograph and vague press descriptions
- Cocteau substituted 'Parade' for a planned 'David' with Stravinsky
- Satie composed the music, Picasso designed the set and costumes
- Choreographer Massine was miscredited on the poster
- Authors see the work as a successful 'collage' rather than cubist
- Scandal arose from the work's coherence, not its heterogeneous elements
- Satie's 'musique d'ameublement' was intended as background but is more significant
Entities
Artists
- Anne Bertrand
- Hervé Gauville
- Pablo Picasso
- Jean Cocteau
- Igor Stravinsky
- Erik Satie
- Léonide Massine
- Jean-Guillaume Lebrun
Institutions
- Théâtre du Châtelet
- artpress
Locations
- Paris
- France
Sources
- artpress —