One night at the little theatre in Padua, the ticket-seller gave us the stage-box (of which he made a great merit), and so we saw the play and the byplay. The prompter, as noted from our point of view, bore a chief part in the drama (as indeed the prompter always does in the Italian theatre), and the scene-shifters appeared as prominent characters. We could not help seeing the virtuous wife, when hotly pursued by the villain of the piece, pause calmly in the wings, before rushing, all tears and despera-tion, upon the stage; ...
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One night at the little theatre in Padua, the ticket-seller gave us the stage-box (of which he made a great merit), and so we saw the play and the byplay. The prompter, as noted from our point of view, bore a chief part in the drama (as indeed the prompter always does in the Italian theatre), and the scene-shifters appeared as prominent characters. We could not help seeing the virtuous wife, when hotly pursued by the villain of the piece, pause calmly in the wings, before rushing, all tears and despera-tion, upon the stage; and we were dismayed to behold the injured husband and his abandoned foe playfully scuffling behind the scenes. All the shabbiness of the the-atre was perfectly apparent to us; we saw the grossness of the painting and the unreality of the properties. And yet I cannot say that the play lost one whit of its charm for me, or that the working of the machinery and its inevitable clumsiness disturbed my enjoyment in the least. There was so much truth and beauty in the playing, that I did not care for the sham of the ropes and gilding, and pre-sently ceased to take any note of them. The illusion which I had thought an essential in the dramatic spectacle, tur-ned out to be a condition of small importance.
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Add this copy of Venetian Life to cart. $12.11, very good condition, Sold by Midtown Scholar Bookstore rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Harrisburg, PA, UNITED STATES, published 1989 by Marlboro Pr.
Add this copy of Venetian Life to cart. $12.00, very good condition, Sold by Abacus Bookshop rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Pittsford, NY, UNITED STATES, published 1989 by The Marlboro Press.
Add this copy of Venetian Life to cart. $38.02, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1989 by Marlboro Pr.
Add this copy of Venetian Life to cart. $18.53, very good condition, Sold by New England Booksellers rated 1.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Greenfield, MA, UNITED STATES, published 1989 by Marlboro Press.
The Venice so extensively and lovingly described by Howells of course no longer exists - hordes of tourists (and their money) have made sure of that. Which makes this genial, involving book all the more enjoyable - Howells could be a bit of a stuffed shirt at times, but in his travel writing, and especially in this volume, he's a wonderful guide and companion and even, in his slightly plodding way, a good raconteur! Most editions of this book come with line-sketches, but you won't need them - Howells' perennially-underestimated literary ability is on full display and paints even better illustrations with his words. A perfect book for any lover of Venice.
