“In the evening, go to the Theatre of the Marionetti”. Claire Clairmont, the Shelleys, and Gerolamo de la Crina

Abstract

The Shelley party not only went to La Scala, but also enjoyed a performance at Milan’s only puppet theatre, Teatro Fiando. This article provides the title of this puppet show and offers evidence of the play-text, one version of which is found in the archives of the world-famous Milan-based puppeteers, the Colla family. Furthermore, the article speculates as to the Shelley party’s peculiar and considerably specific interest in puppet shows, which is read as a sign of potential awareness of the political import of and critique implicit in them, and especially in the history of the puppet they saw on stage, Gerolamo, as well as evidence of a sustained interest in movement, gesture, and the body.