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The Political Afterlife of Eleonora Duse

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 May 2004

Christine C. Mather
Christine C. Mather
Affiliation:
Tennessee State University
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Extract

Eleonora Duse (1858–1924), international star, national treasure, and patriotic Italian died in Pittsburgh in April 1924. Those involved in the memorializing process contended for control of her body, attempting to interpolate her renown in competing narratives of national pride and the universality of art. Duse died at a turning point for Italy, the year Mussolini's Fascists became the majority party. For Mussolini and the Fascists, Duse's death became the occasion for a pageant of Italian pride through a series of carefully orchestrated ceremonies. At the same time, the theatre community tried to establish an artistic narrative more akin to the ideals Duse expressed in life. In the end, nationalist motifs dominated the memorial discourse. Duse's own assertions of the importance of spirit over corporeality became an ironic footnote to a story in which the actress's body stood in for the nation.

Type
Research Article
Information
Theatre Survey , Volume 45 , Issue 1 , May 2004 , pp. 41 - 59
Copyright
© 2004 The American Society for Theatre Research, Inc.

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Footnotes

Christine C. Mather teaches theatre at Tennessee State University. She is working on a book about actress burial. Her other publications include an article in the current issue of Text and Presentation.