ABSTRACT
The scene is Paris in the last decade of the seventeenth century. Louis XIV no longer dances himself, but still keeps an eye on the Académie Royale de la Danse that he founded in 1661, insisting that his courtiers are proficient in the social requirements of the dance. He also keeps an eye on his Italian Players who give performances three times a week at the Hôtel de Bourgogne. They are at the very apogee of their popularity, and it might be argued in the ‘Golden Age’ of the long history of the Commedia dell'Arte.
