Joseph Tortoriti as Scaramouche. Engraving late 17th century

On a stage, against a country background with a house to his left, a male figure steps forward from his left to his right foot, the head turned over his right shoulder, his right arm raised to shoulder height and bent with the fingers curving inwards; in his left hand he holds a guitar. He has a small goatee beard and drooping moustache. On his head is a 'bag' bonnet; his slim buttoned backet has a belt at the low waist and is trimmed with ruches down the fronts, armholes, lower edge and cuffs; at the neck is a deep frill. Around the upper proper right arm is draped a cloak. The breeches fasten below the knee.

Given by Dame Marie Rambert

The print is part of the collection of dance prints amassed by Marie Rambert and her husband, Ashley Dukes in the first half of the 20th century. Eventually numbering 145 items, some of which had belonged to the ballerina Anna Pavlova, it was one of the first and most important specialist collections in private hands.
Rambert bought the first print as a wedding present but could not bear to give it away. As the collection grew, it was displayed in the bar of the Mercury Theatre, the headquarters of Ballet Rambert, but in 1968, Rambert gave the collection to the Victoria and Albert Museum; seven duplicates were returned to Rambert, but these are catalogued in Ivor Guest's A Gallery of Romantic Ballet, which was published before the collection came to the V&A. Although often referred to as a collection of Romantic Ballet prints, there are also important engravings of 17th and 18th century performers, as well as lithographs from the later 19th century, by which time the great days of the ballet in London and Paris were over.

Scaramouche was the Robin Hood role in the commedia dell'arte. Commedia dell'arte (literally 'artistic comedy') developed in 16th century Italy. A company consisted of about ten actors, each of whom developed a specific type of character and comic business, such as a swaggering Captain, old men like Pantaloon or the Doctor, a simple clown and young lovers. The performance was improvised around these stock characters and a pre-agreed plot. The troupes spread into France and came to England in the mid 17th century; stock characters like Harlequin, Columbine, Pantaloon and Clown developed into the English Harlequinade, while Pulcinella, developed into Mr Punch.

Printed as: A Paris chez J. Mariette rue de St. Jacques aux Colonnes d'Hercules, avec Priv. Du Roy

Scaramouche was the Robin Hood role in the commedia dell'arte. Commedia dell'arte (literally 'artistic comedy') developed in 16th century Italy. A company consisted of about ten actors, each of whom developed a specific type of character and comic business, such as a swaggering Captain, old men like Pantaloon or the Doctor, a simple clown and young lovers. The performance was improvised around these stock characters and a pre-agreed plot. The troupes spread into France and came to England in the mid 17th century; stock characters like Harlequin, Columbine, Pantaloon and Clown developed into the English Harlequinade, while Pulcinella, developed into Mr Punch.

E.4952-1968