Thesée Fact Sheet

Thesée Plot Summary

Thesée Performance History

title page

Full score. Typeset. 2° in 4s: ² x¹ (pasted on) A-2Y⁴ Z¹. P3, 1-26, 29[i.e.27], 28-94, 91[i.e.95], 96-103, 86[i.e.104], 105-146, 145[i.e.147], 148-166, 165[i.e.167], 166[i.e.168], 169-199, 202[i.e.200], 201-216, 225[i.e.217], 218-231, 282[i.e.232], 234-242, 247[i.e.243], 248-259, 262[i.e.260], 261, 260[i.e.262], 263-280, 279[i.e.281], 282-372. 9-1/2 X 14-1/4 inches.

M1500 .L95 T4 1688

Thesée (composer Jean-Baptiste Lully, librettist Philippe Quinault) was first performed in January of 1675, before the Ballard firm had begun printing Lully's opera scores. The first edition of Thesée appeared under the Ballard imprint in 1688, after the composer's death, possibly in combination with a revival of the opera in October of that year. Additional Ballard editions appeared in 1711 and 1720. A "second edition" engraved by Henri de Baussen also appeared in 1711 (the second copy of Thesée in the Lully Collection is a de Baussen engraved edition).

This volume in the Lully Collection is a Ballard first edition dated 1688. The Ballard stamp seen in all the first editions in the collection appears on both the first and last pages, with a (posthumous) imitation of Jean-Baptiste Lully's looping signature, indicating that the same contractual agreement continued to hold (i.e.that each volume had to be marked--i.e. inventoried--by both publisher and composer or their representatives before it could be sold).

condition: The current binding is a handsome contemporary full red morocco with gilt floral motifs in the panels of the jointed spine, gilt rules and corners, gilt edges. The endpapers are marbled, and the edges of the text block are gilt and marbled to match the endpapers (see Proserpine 1680 binding for an example of the result.) A vignette, possibly from a printed libretto, is pasted opposite the title page. Some page discoloration, staining, slight foxing; generally in good condition.

All graphics in the volumes in the Lully Collection are listed in the Graphics Catalog.