Le Régisseur. – Voyons mademoiselle, faites sonner..., from "Croquis Dramatiques"
Original title: Le Régisseur. – Voyons mademoiselle, faites sonner..., from "Croquis Dramatiques"
kurzbeschreibung
On December 22, 1856, Honoré Daumier created the lithograph “Le Régisseur. – Voyons mademoiselle, faites sonner ...” as a contribution to his series “Croquis Dramatiques.” It depicts a theatrical scene with three people—a woman and two men—engaged in dialogue on stage. The print is the second state of two and measures 24.8 × 36.8 cm.
Description
Three figures inhabit the stage: on the left, a woman with clasped hands, her gaze lifted, caught mid-speech. In the middle, a man with crossed arms stares at her fixedly; on the right, another man holds a paper and also looks toward the woman. Suggested buildings and trees form the backdrop, while columns and a curtain mark the space as a theater. The caption runs along the bottom edge.
Context
This lithograph belongs to Daumier’s “Croquis Dramatiques” series, made for the satirical journal “Le Charivari.” At its heart lies the world of the theater with its often exaggerated stage directions—here, the instruction to speak the word “navet” (turnip) with a quivering voice. Daumier thus pokes fun at acting training of his time and at complaints about the loss of traditions at the Paris Conservatoire.
Impact
The scene feels lively and ironic thanks to the contrasting attitudes: the agitated woman, the calm director, the scrutinizing observer. Fine hatching intensifies the atmosphere and captures everyday theater life with accuracy. The caption underscores the satirical tone and made the caricature immediately intelligible to contemporary audiences.
Technique
The image is a lithograph, drawn with greasy chalk on a stone and then printed. Daumier used fine lines and hatching to model light and shadow and to give the figures expression. The present impression is known as the second state of two, indicating later revisions to the printing plate.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)