Marleison Ballet - what is it?

Do you know the expression "Marlezzo Ballet"? What it is? Is it a real work of theatrical art, or does the phrase have nothing to do with the choreography? Let's try to understand.

Flower?!

Of course, if you are breeding Senpolia, then for you, perhaps, the Marlezzo ballet is a violet, more precisely a seedling of the Umbra violet, bred by the Russian breeder Konstantin Morev. Rose-bodily pompous miracle with a double cherry-white edging. However, for the rest of the population (not the flower growers) this phrase means something completely different.

Ballet about thrush hunting

The French word "merlaison" is not a geographical name, but a neologism invented in the 17th century by King Louis XIII of the Just. This is the same monarch who later (in spite of historical truth) Alexander Dumas portrayed as a weak-willed and spineless ruler under Cardinal Richelieu. Louis XIII was gifted musically, composed songs, beautifully drew and danced, and even became the author of a work about which, in fact, we are speaking. The king called the play "Le ballet de la Merlaison" - "Marlezzo Ballet". What does this mean in a literal translation from French?

Literally - "Ballet about the hunting for blackbirds" or "Ballet of the thrill". Yes, it turns out, they were hunted with such little black bunnies from the time of antiquity. It is said that the meat of these birds is unusually tasty. His great connoisseur was also Louis XIII. Together with his friends, the king performed the first production of the play, which was demonstrated at the Maslenits Carnival in the magnificent Chantilly Castle near Paris. The premiere took place in 1635, on March 15. Two days later the show was shown again - in the Catholic abbey of Royomon.

Europeans saw in the play their subtext. Two lines were skilfully intertwined in the plot: a direct "declaration of love" for the hunting of a blackbird (which Louis adored) and the hidden message of the new beloved king, Louise de Lafayette. In 16 acts of the performance there was an erotic overtones. Moreover, contemporaries saw in it a political background, because in those days the ballet was one of the forms of conversation about actual events.

By the way, even today on the posters you can find the name "Marlezonsky Ballet". What does it mean? The fact is that four centuries after the creation of the multifaceted performance the production was resumed. In 2011, the French company "Blesk Muz", which deals with the study and restoration of works of art of the Baroque, carried out the reconstruction of the play. Enthusiasts have tried as accurately as possible to reproduce authentic music and choreography. So today you can buy a DVD called "Marlezzo Ballet". What kind of play is this, you can learn, as they say, "from the source".

Marleison Ballet in Russian

However, for any Russian-speaking person, its name has long become a household name. "Yes this is some kind of second act of the Marleison ballet!" - we exclaim, sometimes not realizing what the etymology of this expression is. Meanwhile, the catch phrase was fixed in our language thanks to the cult Soviet film "D'Artagnan and the Three Musketeers." In the book there was no such scene, therefore the aphorism has a purely domestic origin and existence. So, in the Parisian town hall there is a ball. "The second part of the Marleison Ballet!" - the master of ceremonies announces and immediately falls, knocked down by the young Gascon who broke into the stairs, who arrived with pendants for the queen.

Thus, this expression has meant a sharp turn of events: sometimes leading to comical consequences, sometimes just unexpected. Something that interrupts the measured course of life, its habitual course, and turns the solemn, decly action into disorder, confusion, chaos. Unfortunately, sometimes there is a substitution of concepts, and the very expression "Marlezonian ballet" becomes synonymous with boredom and tyagomotina, although in fact it is an incredibly beautiful musical work.