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Show T H E COMPOSITION OF BALLETS. 203 also delight in such exhibitions ; but it is in the power of true taste to destroy the charm26. The dance withdraws itself from such terrible scenes; Terpsichore flies from the sight of murder, death and corpses. There are certain things that should be kept entirely away from the scene, and there are others of which a glimpse is sufficient. Too much attention cannot be paid in selecting subjects intended for Ballets. Those in which dancing may be introduced, must not be appropriated to the tragic style; and on the contrary, the gay movements of the comic ought to have nothing to do*with tragic gravity and pathos. When working up serious subjects, the original, as has been already observed, must be modified and embellished. Those representations that are rather horrid than tragic should never stain the scene ; they are rejected by good sense, and our feelings are wounded by them. Many artists are aware of the defects of such pieces; but still do not avoid them while composing for certain audiences, whose taste appears to rival that of the more serious and calculating inhabitants on the banks of the Thames*. The Italians like to be deeply affected and agitated by the power of theatrical representation. Melpomene holds strong dominion over them, while the empire of her sister Thalia is weak. Such a predilection may be attributed to the force and fire of their imagination, and to a deep and characteristic sensibility. They require to be as much moved and transported by a Ballet as by a spoken piece. They require of pantomimic performers the utmost exertion ; and criticise a Ballet-master as unsparingly as they would a dramatic poet. This severity, however, is advantageous to the art, since it excites talent, * M. B. does not yet know us a fond. |