Artwork
Fanny Elssler in La Tarentule
Fanny Elssler in La Tarentule is a print by the Romanticist artist Jules Bouvier. It dates from 1840 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. This print depicts Fanny Elssler performing in the ballet La Tarentule.
About this work
This print shows a dancer named Fanny Elssler performing in a ballet called *La Tarentule* in 1840.
This print shows a dancer named Fanny Elssler performing in a ballet called *La Tarentule* in 1840. It’s a Romantic-era work about a folk tale where a spider’s bite causes wild dancing. Elssler holds castanets, not usually part of this Italian dance, blurring cultural lines.
The scene mixes energy and control—fast steps but poised posture. Flower sprays on the floor mark admiring fans. The print captures the moment’s tension between heat and restraint.
See more prints by Bouvier, Jules.
Overview
This print depicts Fanny Elssler performing in the ballet La Tarentule. Created in 1840, it captures a moment from a Romantic-era work inspired by a folk tale about a spider's bite and its supposed effects.
Subject & Meaning
The ballet is based on the legend that a tarantula's bite causes delirium, cured by an energetic dance, the tarantella. Elssler's character, the fiancée of the afflicted, dances this role, embodying contrasts of energy and restraint.
Technique & Style
The print showcases Elssler's poised yet dynamic performance, with castanets in hand, an element not traditional to the Italian tarantella, indicating a blending of cultural influences. The scene is set with flower sprays on the floor, symbolizing admiration from the audience.
Artist & collection
Artist
Jules Bouvier made 19th-century lithographs that turned leading ballet dancers into star prints.
