During its twenty-year lifespan, the Ballets Russes (1909 to 1929) was celebrated for bringing together illustrious artistic and cultural figures to collaborate on exotic productions based on Russian, Spanish, English and French themes. Notable by its absence from the Ballets Russes’ exotic interests is the culture and music of America, and this despite that during the 1920s Americans culture was a source of fascination and unease in the European cultural imagination. The Ballets Russes’ impresario, Serge Diaghilev, is recognized as holding the culture of the New World in disdain, yet nonetheless commissioned a “typically American” ballet score from Chicago composer John Alden Carpenter in 1923, which resulted in a score featuring a skyscraper-inspired machine aesthetic, and the inclusion of jazz and spirituals. Carpenter’s ballet was dropped by the Ballets Russes before production and was ultimately premiered as Skyscrapers: A Ballet of Modern American Life by the Metropolitan Opera Company on 19 February 1926. This thesis seeks to better understand Diaghilev’s perceived disdain for American culture, the reasons that caused him to avoid the inclusion of an American ballet in the Ballets Russes’ repertory, and his motives for commissioning a score from Carpenter. Drawing on archival documents from the Library of Congress, I construct a historical narrative of the commission and offer insight into the complex politics of patronage in the Ballets Russes. Furthermore, I position Skyscrapers as a product of cultural transfer, thus illustrating the manner in which Carpenter conceived of his ballet as an American work for an international audience. Finally, I examine the Metropolitan production of Skyscrapers and how it perpetuated racial stereotypes and participated in the debates about the mechanization of American life during the 1920s.

Le monde des arts est en pleine effervescence au début du XXe siècle, après le scandale déclenché par l’exposition des œuvres des Fauves au Salon d’Automne de 1905. Loin de cette agitation, les décors de scène sont réalisés par des décorateurs professionnels qui restent attachés aux procédés traditionnels. En 1909, l’arrivée des Ballets russes au Châtelet marque une rupture dans la conception du rôle du peintre dans le ballet. En 1919, alors que la compagnie jouit d’une grande renommée, Serge Diaghilev commande à André Derain les décors et les costumes de La Boutique Fantasque. Au sortir de la guerre où il a servi, Derain saisit cette fabuleuse occasion de remonter sur la scène artistique. Grâce au succès du ballet, c’est une longue série de collaborations fructueuses avec le monde du spectacle qui débute pour le peintre. Entre 1919 et 1953, Derain conçoit les décors et les costumes de deux pièces de théâtre, deux opéras, treize ballets et élabore de nombreux projets qui n’ont jamais été créés. Il rédige également plusieurs arguments, participe à la mise en musique de certaines de ces œuvres, réalisations auxquelles s’ajoutent les idées qu’il apporte à la mise en scène et à la chorégraphie. Cette étude met en lumière l’importance de l’œuvre scénique d’André Derain et ses particularités. Son travail révèle une richesse jusqu’alors méconnue et inexploitée. Notre étude permet ainsi de donner un nouvel éclairage sur le peintre et son œuvre. Artiste accompli et aux multiples facettes, Derain ne s’est pas contenté du rôle de décorateur, sa passion pour la musique et le théâtre l’ont, bien plus encore, amené à se poser en véritable créateur de ballets. / In the early twentieth century the art world was bubbling with excitement following the scandal caused by the exhibition of work by members of the Fauves movement at the 1905 Salon d’Automne. Away from this fuss, stage sets were being created by set designers who remained attached to traditional methods. In 1909 the arrival of the Ballets Russes at Châtelet marked a breaking away from the understanding of the scenic artist’s role. In 1919, when the company was immensely famous, Serge Diaghilev commissioned Andre Derain to create sets and costumes for La Boutique Fantasque. Having served in the War, Derain grasped this fabulous opportunity to return to the world of art. The success of the ballet heralded a series of fruitful collaborations between him and the world of show business. Between 1919 and 1953, Derain created sets and costumes for two plays, two operas and thirteen ballets, as well as working on several uncompleted projects. He also wrote several librettos and was involved in the musical setting of some of these works, achievements that added to the ideas that he brought to the staging and choreography. This research highlights the importance of Derain’s stage work and its special features. This reveals the hitherto unrecognized and untapped wealth of his work. Our study thus sheds a new light on the painter and his creations. A skilled and multi-faceted artist and not content with his role as designer, Derain’s passion for music and theatre begs a true creator of ballets.