1muller.docx

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1muller

RecentTheatricalAndMusicalAdaptationsOf

Apuleius´Metamorphoses

©HendrikMüller-Reineke,UniversityofGöttingen

Undoubtedly,nootherworkofancientliteratureissofulloftheatricalepisodes,masquerades,andpantomimeasApuleius’novelMetamorphoses,alsoknownasTheGoldenAssfromthesecondcenturyad,inwhichLucius,ayoungman,isaccidentallyturnedbywitchcraftintoasinineformandinthisguiseexperiencesastreamofadventuresbeforehegainshishumanformbackonlybyinitiationtothecultofthegoddessIsis.

AsRegineMayhasrecentlyshownconvincingly,dramaisusedconstantlyasanintertextinallofApuleius’works,andespeciallyintheMetamorphosestheauthormakesuseofthereaders’knowledgeofcontemporarydrama,inparticularcomedy,tointerpretthecomicadventuresofhisprotagonist.

ItisthereforeunsurprisingthatsoonafterthisonlyLatinnoveltohavesurvivedasanentiretywastranslatedintothemodernlanguages,itwasalso,atleastpartially,adaptedforthestage.Inearliercenturiesthough,theseadaptationsarelimitedtotheinsetstoryofCupidandPsyche.ThereasonforthatistheoverallatmosphereofthestorywhichformstheframeworkofApuleius’novelwithitssomewhatloosemorality:

Lucius’sexualencounterswithPhotisandevenmorehiscarnaladventuresinasinineformwereformanycenturiesnotconsideredasasuitabletopicforaliteraryoratheatreaudience.

However,withtheradicalchangesintheattitudesoftheWesternworldtowardssexualmoralityandevergrowingsexualfreedomsincethe1960sourattitudetowardscertainaspectsofclassicalliteraturehasfundamentallychanged,andthischangealsohadanenormousinfluenceonthereceptionofthismostfascinatingpieceofancientliterature.Still,Apuleius’Metamorphosesasawholewerediscoveredrelativelylateasasubjectmatterforplaysandhavebeenputonstageregularlyonlyinveryrecentyears.

Iwillbeginthispaperbygivingabriefoverviewofthegeneral,andinparticularthemusicalandtheatrical,receptionofApuleius’novelsincetheRenaissance.ThissummaryprovestheassumptionthatstageadaptationsofApuleius’novelforcenturiesmoreorlessmeanadaptationsofthetaleofCupidandPsyche.Althoughmostofmyobservationsarebasedonalreadyexistingresearchandarethereforefarfromoriginal,Ihopeatleasttocombinesomeloosestrands,asinmanycasesthedataavailablesofarexistsonlyintheformofhandbookentries.ButasmymainfocusinthispaperisclearlyaimedatmorerecentadaptationsoftheMetamorphoses,IcanonlytreatmostoftheseadaptationsfromtheRenaissancetothetwentiethcenturyverybriefly,andfurthermoreIwilllookatthingswithacentralEuropeanperspective.Moreimportantforthesakeofmyconclusionistheimpressionoftheoveralldevelopment,andthereadershouldmostimportantlynoticetheevergrowingmassofproductionsofCupidandPsychestageversions,manyaccompaniedbymusic,fromthesixteenthcenturyonwards.

InthesecondpartIwillconcentrateonthegrowingnumberofproductionsoftheMetamorphosesattheendofthetwentiethandthebeginningofthetwentyfirstcentury,someofthemstillbasedontheinsettaleofCupidandPsyche,butothersconstitutingaclearlygrowingnumberofadaptationsfocusingondifferentaspectsofthenovel.Thereader’sattentionisespeciallydrawntosomeoftheverylatestadaptationsoverthelastdecade,someofthemquitealientotheoriginal.Withtheseproductionsthispaperattainsafarmoreglobalperspective,bothintermsoftheircountryoforiginandtheiraffiliationwithdifferentgenres.Mostoftheveryrecentadaptationsarenot（yet）availableorareevensimplynotreproducibleinprintedform.InthesecasestheirdocumentationontheWorldwideWebhassuppliedmewithmaterialforthisoverview.Thenatureofthismaterialshowsthat,particularlyinthecaseofperformancereception,itisnecessarytotakealookbeyondtheboundariesoftraditionestablishedbyclassicalphilology,especiallyasinthiscasewearenotdealingwithapieceofliteraturewhichwasoriginallyintendedtobeputonstage.Insteadwehavetobeawareofthe‘criticaldistance’betweentheancienttextanditsmodernversionsthatshouldhelpustobroadenourculturalhorizon.

EarlyLiteraryReceptionoftheMetamorphoses

DuringtheRenaissance

WhereasduringLateAntiquityandtheMiddleAgesApuleius’Metamorphosesweretreatedassomewhatdubious,theyhadaconsiderablylargerinfluenceontheemergingnovelisticliteratureoftheRenaissanceandearlymoderntimes.ThefewsurvivingRomanverdictsontheliteraryqualityandimportanceoftheancientnovelsarenegative,usuallyonthegroundsthatthesetextswereconsideredtoofrivolousincontenttojointheseriouscanonofliterature:

MacrobiusinhisSomniumScipionis‘condemnsprosefictionasmerelytitillatingandmoresuitableforthenurserythanforseriousconsideration’,andlikewiseinasupposedletterbyemperorSeptimiusSeverusintheHistoriaAugustathenovelisassociatedwitholdwomen,itscontentcharacterisedastrivial,anditsreaderslabelledcredulous.ThisearlymarginalisationispartlyrevisedduringtheRenaissance,whenitwastheallegoricalinterpretationofApuleius’Metamorphoses（alongwiththatofothernovels）thathelpedtoconferthedeepintellectualsignificancewhichseemedtobelackingonthesurface.

ThemodernreceptionofApuleius’novelbeginsin1355whenthehumanistGiovanniBoccacciodiscoveredamanuscriptoftheMetamorphosesatMonteCassino,transcribedit,andlaterallegorisedthetaleofCupidandPsycheinchapter7.2ofhisDeGenealogiisDeumGentilium,acollectionofsimilarmythologicalnarrativesfromantiquity.Boccaccioalsoincludedthreeadulterystoriesfrombook9ofApuleius’novelinhisclassicIlDecamerone,bestknownforitsbawdytalesofloveinallitsfacets.ThestoriesBoccaccioadaptedfromhismodelare‘Theloverinacask’（Apuleius,Metamorphoses9.5–7）atIlDecamerone7.2,inwhichawifehidesherloverinatub,andtwocombinedadulterystoriesatDecamerone5.10:

’TheMiller’swife’（Apuleius,Metamorphoses9.22–31）,inwhichawifeandhernewloveraresurprisedbythemiller’sreturn.Thewifemanagestohideherloveratfirstbeforeheiseventuallydiscoveredbythehusbandandpunishedappropriately.Boccaccio’sversionsoftheseepisodesfromApuleiusareclearlymodified:

thealterationsoftheoriginalstoriesareobviouslyrequiredbythesexualattitudesoftheRenaissancethat,needlesstosay,weredifferenttothoseofantiquity.ButBoccacciohasevenexploitedhisalterationstogiveApuleius’versionamorecomictone:

inhisversionitbecomesclearfromthebeginningthatthereasonwhythemiller’swifetookloversatallliesinherhusband’shomosexuality,andconsequentlythecuckoldedmillerpunisheshisrivalbyassaultinghiminthemill’sbedroom.

Boccaccio’suseofApuleius’workonlymarksthebeginningofthelatter’spopularity.Hiscollectedworkswerealsoamongtheearliestclassicalbookseverprinted,withthefirsteditionpublishedinRomeundertheinspectionofJohannesAndreas,bishopofAleria,in1465andreissuedin1488and1493inVenice.Naturally,withthesubsequenttranslationsoftheMetamorphosesintoItalian（MatteoMariaBoiardo,printedin1508andespeciallyAgnoloFirenzuola’sinfluentialversion,finishedin1524andprintedasL’asinod’oroin1550,laterreprintedseveraltimes）,Spanish（DiegoLópezdeCartagena,1513）,French（GuillaumeMichel,1522）,German（JohannSieder,1500,printedinAugsburg1538asAinSchönLieblich,auchkurtzweyliggedichtevoneinemguldenEsel）orEnglish（TheGoldenAssebyWilliamAdlington,1566）,Apuleius’novelbecameoneofthemostwidelyreadworksoffictioninEurope.InFrancealone,theGoldenAsswaspublishedfourtimesbetween1600and1648.TheMetamorphosesalsohelpedtogivebirthtothegenreoftheso-calledpicaresquenovelinSpain.

SeparateStageAdaptationsoftheMythofCupidandPsyche（Sixteenth–TwentiethCentury）

TheinsettaleofCupidandPsyche（Apuleius,Metamorphoses4.28–6,24）inparticularhasinspiredbothwritersandcomposerssinceitbecamepopularintheRenaissance.IttellsthestoryofthemarriageofthehumangirlPsychetoamysteriousspouse—whoturnsouttobethegodCupid—theirseparationcausedbyherevilsisters,Psyche’sadventurousquestforherlosthusband,andtheirhappyreunificationattheend.ThetalehasoftenbeencharacterisedastheearliestEuropeanfolktale.Yetthisdesignationisananachronism,asthedevelopmentofthegenreoffairy-tale,accordingtorecentresearch,isclearlyaresultofmoderntimes:

inantiquityitsplacewastakenbymythologicaltalesbasedonpopularbelief.AlreadyinlateantiquitythestoryofCupidandPsychehaddevelopedanallegoricalreceptionofitsown,manifestingitselfinafifthorsixthcenturyversionbyFulgentius,aLatingrammarianofAfricanorigin,whoinhisMythologiarumLibriexplainedaseriesofoldermythsineithermysticalorallegoricalways.FulgentiusseesinApuleius’talethequestofthehumansoul,Psyche,forLove,aliasCupid.IntheRenaissancethisallegoricalversionhasbeenreawakenedbyBoccaccio’sversioninDeGenealogiisDeumGentiliummentionedearlier.

Separateprintededitionsofthetaleappearsurprisinglylatethough,theearliestbyNorthiusattheendoftheeighteenthcentury.Northius’editionisclearlyinspiredbythecommoncontemporaryGermaninterestinfairy-talesandfolktalesandhasbeenfollowedbyanevergrowingnumberofeditionsuntiltoday.

As,quitenaturally,Lucius’sexualad