Encyclopedia of Performing Arts
Encyclopedia
The Encyclopedia of Performing Arts (Italian
: Enciclopedia dello Spettacolo; sometimes cited as Enciclopedio dello Spettacolo) was an Italian language specialty encyclopedia
of performing arts
, published between 1954 and 1965. Its first editor was the Italian theatre critic and journalist, Silvio D'Amico
. Considered to be the most comprehensive international performing arts encyclopedia, it is included in the reference section of many libraries.
The structure of the work was better articulated. Responsibility for each section, such as Movies, Music, or Theater, was delegated to an initial small staff that rapidly grew to thirty editors that coordinated over five hundred employees. Large blocks of work were assigned to collaborators, many of them in foreign countries.
D'Amico felt that the second project benefited from finding amateur collectors without whose assistance entire sectors of biographical entries would have been less detailed. Collected material came from abroad or was bought directly in the antique market. An example of a collector was Ulderico Rolandi, a gynecologist who lived in the Via Veneto, and who had made a hobby of collecting, filing and examining libretto
s. He had accumulated what was thought to be the largest collection of opera
librettos after the Library of Congress
. Another example was David Turcotte who had developed a catalog of American cinema.
The project suffered a severe crisis in 1957, two years after the death of D'Amico, due to disagreements between the editorial office and the publisher. The publisher's expectation was to publish two volumes a year, but the editorial staff was only able to put out a single volume each year. Because of this crisis, there is an imbalance between the first volume and the last four whose detail is considered sometimes less accurate.
Published in Rome by Unione Editoriale in 1966, the Enciclopedia dello spettacolo. Aggiornamento 1955-1965 ("Encyclopedia of Performing Arts, Supplementary 1955-1965) is an update of the main set. The Aggiornamento addresses developments and biographies.
Published in Rome by Unione Editoriale in 1968, the Enciclopedia dello spettacolo. Indice-repertorio (Encyclopedia of Performing Arts. Index-Directory) is a title index of the 145,000 entries cited in the main set and the supplements. It addresses author, genre and year of composition.
section was under the direction of D'Amico's son, Fedele D'Amico, a musicologist
, with Nino Pirrotta
, Franco Serpa and Emilia Zanetti as editors.
Consultants included Sabatino Moscati
for Hebrew and Yiddish theater; Dario Puccini for the Iberian language theater; Luigi Salvini for Slavic, Finno-Ugric and Romanian language theater; Giuliano Bertuccioli for Chinese language theater. Almost all of the drawings were made by young, recent graduates. Some of the illustrations were edited by Helen Poveledo. Texts and drafts were reviewed by professors.
The proposed biographies of many lesser figures were not included as the editorial staff were unable to keep up with the publisher's deadline.
Criticism of the encyclopedia included that it was only available in the Italian language; that it was Eurocentric
; and that non-European theater and 20th century theater were underrepresented. While the encyclopedia was first published in the 1950s, it was based on pre-World War II documentation. By the 1970s, the Encyclopedia of Performing Arts was considered out of date.
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
: Enciclopedia dello Spettacolo; sometimes cited as Enciclopedio dello Spettacolo) was an Italian language specialty encyclopedia
Encyclopedia
An encyclopedia is a type of reference work, a compendium holding a summary of information from either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge....
of performing arts
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
, published between 1954 and 1965. Its first editor was the Italian theatre critic and journalist, Silvio D'Amico
Silvio D'Amico
Silvio D'Amico was an Italian theatre critic, journalist ,and theorist of Italian theater. Not a Fascist himself, D'Amico was the major theater critic during the ventennio, the twenty years of Fascist rule in Italy...
. Considered to be the most comprehensive international performing arts encyclopedia, it is included in the reference section of many libraries.
History
The Encyclopedia of Performing Arts was created by two separate projects, one dating to 1945 and the other to 1954.Early version
Starting in 1945 or 1946, D'Amico conceived of a project to develop an encyclopedia of the performing arts. Undertaken by an editorial team composed of a few people and led by D'Amico, it was produced in three or four years and contained four volumes. Considered superficial, it was not publishable. However, it developed a model for scientific study of the theater and other performing arts.Later version
Conceived as a set of 12 volumes, the second project took on an ethnographic approach. It had the advantage of a stable editorial group and used foreign employees. D'Amico's editorial staff worked at the Palazzo Doria Pamphili, Via del Plebiscito 112. The attorney Carlo Minù, D'Amico's brother-in-law, found funding for the second project and referred D'Amico to publishers. In drawing up lists of dramas, operas, ballets, films, the editorial team wondered if it their work was worthwhile or helpful. It was Francesco Savio who sometimes said, "Of course it is; if someone else wants one day to create an Encyclopedia of Performing Arts, they would find this materials to be useful." When the news spread that the encyclopedia was about to be published, a delegation from arrived wanting guidance in the organizational work to start up an encyclopedia of Prague theater.The structure of the work was better articulated. Responsibility for each section, such as Movies, Music, or Theater, was delegated to an initial small staff that rapidly grew to thirty editors that coordinated over five hundred employees. Large blocks of work were assigned to collaborators, many of them in foreign countries.
D'Amico felt that the second project benefited from finding amateur collectors without whose assistance entire sectors of biographical entries would have been less detailed. Collected material came from abroad or was bought directly in the antique market. An example of a collector was Ulderico Rolandi, a gynecologist who lived in the Via Veneto, and who had made a hobby of collecting, filing and examining libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
s. He had accumulated what was thought to be the largest collection of opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
librettos after the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
. Another example was David Turcotte who had developed a catalog of American cinema.
The project suffered a severe crisis in 1957, two years after the death of D'Amico, due to disagreements between the editorial office and the publisher. The publisher's expectation was to publish two volumes a year, but the editorial staff was only able to put out a single volume each year. Because of this crisis, there is an imbalance between the first volume and the last four whose detail is considered sometimes less accurate.
Editions
Published between 1954 and 1962, the original nine volume Enciclopedia dello Spettacolo covers ballet, films, opera, plays, theater, vaudeville, and other areas of entertainment. They include signed essays that discuss performers, directors, and writers. Other sections discuss genres and themes, as well as history, technical subjects, and bibliographies. The encyclopedia is over 18,000 pages in length and profusely illustrated with thousands of illustrations of which 700 are in the text, 1800 are out of the text, and there are 320 color plates. The first print run of 10,000 copies was followed by a reprint of 5,000 additional copies. Originally published in Rome by Casa Editrice Le Maschere, reprints were published by UNEDI.Published in Rome by Unione Editoriale in 1966, the Enciclopedia dello spettacolo. Aggiornamento 1955-1965 ("Encyclopedia of Performing Arts, Supplementary 1955-1965) is an update of the main set. The Aggiornamento addresses developments and biographies.
Published in Rome by Unione Editoriale in 1968, the Enciclopedia dello spettacolo. Indice-repertorio (Encyclopedia of Performing Arts. Index-Directory) is a title index of the 145,000 entries cited in the main set and the supplements. It addresses author, genre and year of composition.
Personnel and management
D'Amico conceived of the project and brought it to fruition. The Theater section was under the direction of Luigi Squarzina; he also did the film section. D'Amico's father worked on the Drama Theatre section, while his brother Mario worked on the music section. Gabriele Baldini and later Gian Luigi Rondi were responsible for the Cinema section. Additional sections were led by others including: Classical Antiquity by Bruno Gentili, German theater by Paolo Chiarini, Slavic theater by Angelo Maria Ripellino, English theater by Brunacci, French theater by Gian Carlo Roscioni, Iberian theater by Luciana Stegagno Picchio, and Italian theater by Niccolò Gallo, Giulio Cesare Castello, and Caesar Garboli. The Chamber musicChamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
section was under the direction of D'Amico's son, Fedele D'Amico, a musicologist
Musicology
Musicology is the scholarly study of music. The word is used in narrow, broad and intermediate senses. In the narrow sense, musicology is confined to the music history of Western culture...
, with Nino Pirrotta
Nino Pirrotta
Nino Pirrotta was an Italian musicologist of international renown who specialized in Italian music from the late medieval, Renaissance and early Baroque eras. In 1931 he earned a degree in art history from the University of Florence after having already earned a diploma in organ performance...
, Franco Serpa and Emilia Zanetti as editors.
Consultants included Sabatino Moscati
Sabatino Moscati
Sabatino Moscati was an Italian archaeologist and linguist known for his work on Phoenician and Punic civilizations...
for Hebrew and Yiddish theater; Dario Puccini for the Iberian language theater; Luigi Salvini for Slavic, Finno-Ugric and Romanian language theater; Giuliano Bertuccioli for Chinese language theater. Almost all of the drawings were made by young, recent graduates. Some of the illustrations were edited by Helen Poveledo. Texts and drafts were reviewed by professors.
Critical and popular assessments
Most libraries found it to be an essential component of their reference section.The proposed biographies of many lesser figures were not included as the editorial staff were unable to keep up with the publisher's deadline.
Criticism of the encyclopedia included that it was only available in the Italian language; that it was Eurocentric
Eurocentrism
Eurocentrism is the practice of viewing the world from a European perspective and with an implied belief, either consciously or subconsciously, in the preeminence of European culture...
; and that non-European theater and 20th century theater were underrepresented. While the encyclopedia was first published in the 1950s, it was based on pre-World War II documentation. By the 1970s, the Encyclopedia of Performing Arts was considered out of date.