Theatre Design & Technology - Dec 1969 - 27

BOOK REVIEWS

_____________________________ Thomas Watson

Books Received:

Occupational Costume in England: From the
11 th Century to 1914. by Phillis Cunnington and Catherine Lucas, with additional
chapters by Alan Mansfield, New York:
Barnes & Noble, Inc., 1967; pp. 427.
$10.00.
Specific knowledge about a particular occupational costume has been very difficult
or impossible to find. Rarely would onestop
to ask what the size, color, and shape of
an apron should be, or whether the stripes
should be vertical or horizontal for this
servant. As a result the costumer was more
likely than not to make an intelligent guess
as to the look of a particular occupational
costume. This practice is ended now with
the publication of Occupational Costume in
England.
The book is divided into fifteen chapters in
which are discussed various occupational
groups such as "Seamen and Fisherfolk,"
"Medical Profession," and "Postal Services
and Stage Coach es." Each chapter is further
divided into appropriate topics. For example,
the chapter, "Tradesmen and CraftsmenPart I," discusses "Carpenters," "Paper
Caps,"
"Bu ild ers," "Smiths," "Textile
Workers," and "Tailors," Each small unit,
such as "Smiths," is presented chronologically. It is significant, and indicative of the
scholarship associated with books authored
by Phillis Cunnington, that Occupational
Costume in England, is not just a condensation of many specialized books such
as The Dress of the British Sailor, but uses
material culled from diaries, histories, novels, plays, etc. as well as the traditional art
sources, to document occupational dress.
It should be noted that chapters authored
by Alan Mansfield-in particular "Police"
and "Firemen" -are somewhat more detailed, and as a result more useful to the
costumer. The book's last two chapters,
which almost seem to be afterthoughts, are
less effective than previous chapters. Much
of the material in "Evolution of Protective
Clothing" would be much more useful if
included under its appropriate occupational
group. The last chapter, "Some Special Relations of Clothing to Work," is even less
effective. Some of the sub-topics in this
chapter are somewhat related to the general
scope of the book, but a couple are almost
pointless.

discussed-the church or the military. A
single sentence buried in the last chapter
does indicate that the latter two areas are
outside the domain of the book. In defense,
let it be said that the adequate treatment of
either of these topics would need a separate
volume. Even cursory discussion should have
been included in a book covering the occupational costume of England, while the law
profession seems definitely within the domain of the book.
The book is invaluable as a research aid for
the costumer, but it does presume a basic
vocabulary and knowledge of costume history. There are over 400 drawings and
photographs, but more color plates would
have been desirable. As if the text and figures weren't enough, an eight page bibliography contains many potential leads for
the costumer. In general, there is no question of the value of the volume, or that it
should be owned by every costumer, for it
contains information not available in any
other single volume. But Occupational Costume in England is not the comprehensive
volume that Phillis Cunnington's previous
books have conditioned costumers to expect.
Robert Lewis Smith
Syracuse University

Adolphe Appia, Prophet of the Modern
Theatre: A Profile, by Walther R. Volbach
Wesleyan University Press

As should be apparent, even a book on the
limited topic of occupational costume cannot
be comprehensive. Though the authors have
presented a fairly representative and rather
complete cross section of the occupational
classes, there are a few notable omissions.
There is no discussion of the law profession-though the medical profession is

Some forty years after the death of Adolphe
Appia we finally have the first book-I ength
study in English of his work and of the life
that produced it. As early as 1915 Carl Van
Vechten published in this country a collection of essays called MUSIC AFTER THE
GREAT WAR AND OTHER STUDIES. Included in this small volume was an essay
recognizing Appia as the leader of the
modern movement in theatre. Why have we
had to wait so long for this full length inquiry now fulfilled by Mr. Vol bach's book?
But then, why did we have to wait so long
for published English translations of Appia's
two major works, MUSIC AND TH E ART
OF THE THEATRE and THE WORK OF
LIVING ART? At least a partial answer to
these questions comes from Mr. Volbach's
study. Particularly in the biographical sections which show us the formation of Appia's
personality one can discern the shy, withdrawn and inwardly directed side of the man
Even when his work was widely known among
people in the theatre, he as a person, remained unknown. In 1911 Craig stated in
his ON THE ART OF THE THEATRE that
Appia was dead. This lack of a public
image of Appia no doubt added to the delay of general recognition. With the publication of Mr. Volbach's book, greater understanding of Appia and his work is bound to
come about.

DECEMBER,1969

THEATER DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

The wealth of previously unavailable material puts this book in a special category.
Written with love and sensitivity it reveals
Appia, the man, and Appia, th e artist, and
the threads that bound them together.
In order to place the work of Appia in the
proper perspective, Mr. Volbach has provided a concise prologue defining the conditions existing in the theatre when Appia
first started his work. This provides a point
of reference that helps immensely to produce the sharp profile that results from this
book.
A reader will of course be most interested
in the sections of the book that provide information previously I ittle known to him. For
me these included the details of Appia's
work with Jaques-Dalcroze and those relating to Jacques Copeau. In addition there
is all the unpublished biographical information which is new to most of us.
The work with Jaques-Dalcroze was the
transitional point that allowed Appia to develop from his Wagnerian studies and his
work MUSIC AND THE ART OF THE THEATRE to his later designs and THE WORK OF
LIVING ART. The drawings of the RHYTHMIC
SPACES thus become, in a sense, transitional drawings. When viewed in this way,
the progressive development shown throughout the entire series of Appia's drawings
becomes more explicit.
The relationship with Copeau, beyond the
working influence that they had on one
another, seemed to provide the terrible need
for corroboration that Appia must have felt
at this time. It must be remembered that in
addition to the isolation suffered by any artist who is an innovator, Appia's individual
nature and personality intensified this isolation.
The biographical material and the treatment
of Appia the man are presented with gentleness and understanding but with a forthright honesty. What could have been treated
in a sensational manner in order to make
Appia more interesting as a personality, has
been handled with knowledgeable kindness.
In all of this, Mr. Volbach has presented
th e material sensi tively and concisely.
Not the least valuable contribution of the
book is the profusion of illustrations. The
quality of the stage photographs and of the
reproductions of drawings is to be commended as is their choice. Most of these
and many of the photographs of .L\ppia himself have not been previously published.
Having known the drawings for the Basel
production of THE RHINEGOLD and THE
VALKY RE, one is amazed to see the actual
settings and how exactly the drawings were
realized. Although Mr. Volbach mentions
the saint-like quality in the photographs of
Appia, one is astounded to see in the
later ones the striking resemblance to
Ramakrishna. The eight photographs and the

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Dec 1969