The Transnational Reception of Improvised Drama: Tommaso Sgricci in Paris and in the Periodicals

Abstract

The Italian improvvisatore Tommaso Sgricci (1789–1836), known for his ability to improvise tragic dramas on themes requested by audience members, made international tours to Paris in 1824 and 1826. This article examines the impact of his performances in Parisian theatres by way of the reviews that appeared in European periodicals. Differences among national tastes and aesthetic values inform the reception of Sgricci's performances by French, German, and English reviewers, and these differences become further defined as reviewers respond to one another and write for different markets. The transnational reception of Sgricci and other improvvisatori also reveals how nineteenth-century journalists are themselves improvising as they adapt rapidly to new readerships and innovative types of performance.