The Dido myth has evolved and been adapted by many cultures over the centuries. Each Dido was altered to fit the needs of its creator, their society and customs. Despite these variations, every Dido retelling is derived from the Virgilian Dido, historical Dido, or chaste Dido narrative, or a combination of these stories. The pasticcio opera, Ópera armónica al estilo italiano que se intitula Dido y Eneas draws on the general Virgilian plot but emphasizes the chaste Dido narrative. The changes in the plot of Dido y Eneas reflect societal gender norms, theatrical conventions, and historical figures, specifically Queen María Luisa Gabriela, from eighteenth-century Spain. The Dido of Dido y Eneas can be divided into two main personas: Dido the queen and Dido the lover. Her arias, which come from preexisting Italian operas, convey the dramatic text very well. However, no matter what persona Dido portrays, she never fully loses control nor lets her passions rule her actions. Even in the moments before her suicide, her aria, "Punta intrepida," lacks the overt emotionality found in the popular Dido lament made famous by Purcell. This thesis aims to situate Dido y Eneas within the history of the Dido narrative and gender conceptions in the early eighteenth century, and to analyze depictions of affect in Dido's da capo arias. This Dido is a product of her time, transforming the Dido myth to portray a regal queen who overcomes emotional desire and remains faithful to her deceased husband becoming a paragon of chastity.

In this master thesis I look at the revivals of Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice in London (1770 and 1785), Florence (1771), and Naples (1774). After the premiere of Orfeo ed Euridice in Vienna in 1762, Gluck himself reworked the opera for new productions in Parma (1769) and Paris (1774). The versions studied in my thesis, however, were adapted and included music by other composers, such as Johann Christian Bach and Pietro Alessandro Guglielmi. There were a number of added scenes, new characters, and inserted arias, sometimes in a very contrasting style to what Gluck and Calzabigi tried to achieve in their reform of opera seria. For this reason, the reworkings have often been called pasticcio versions in modern literature.  Through a comparative study of the music manuscripts and the printed libretti, I show that these four productions of the opera exhibit four unique approaches to performing the opera at public opera houses in the late eighteenth century. Orfeo was consistently lengthened in order to make the performance long enough for an evening at the opera, but how it was changed varied considerably according to the context of the performance. This suggests a complexity and nuance of the practice of adaptations and substitutions in late eighteenth-century opera in general, and the reception of Orfeo in particular, that have not previously been fully acknowledged.

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Text in Afrikaans / The concepts of parody and pastiche are oftell employed by leading theoreticians to offer definitions of the elusive term "Postmodernism". One is led to conclude that parody and pastiche are direct1y linked to Postmodernism. This is especially valid in the case of pastiche. Indeed, it appears, therefore, that the continllous assumption of the appellation "pastiche" in the Postmodernist discourse could reveal its link to Postmodernism and Postmodernity in general. While parody and pastiche are not new phenomena, the question is why, ill our time, these concepts should be so acutely present in the discourse of literary theory - especially in theoretic contributions on Postmodernism and/or Postmodernis! texts. However, an investigation of the studies done on Postmodernist drama/theatre reveals a distinct lack of reflection about the role of parody and pastiche and a disturbing absence of publication on the the subject. This state of affairs reveals a conspicuous delay in terms of theoretical deliberation when compared to other investigat1ve practices, i.e. literary criticism and philosophy. This study, then, is essentially interested in transposing the present emphasis on parody and pastiche found in contemporary literary theory to Postmodernist drama/theatre. The final objective of this study is to explore the impact of the concepts of parody and pastiche on twentieth century drama/theatre and their possible contribution to a better understanding of the elusive term "Postmodemist drama/theatre". / Afrikaans and Theory of Literature / D. Litt. et Phil. (Literature)

Text in Afrikaans / The concepts of parody and pastiche are oftell employed by leading theoreticians to offer definitions of the elusive term "Postmodernism". One is led to conclude that parody and pastiche are direct1y linked to Postmodernism. This is especially valid in the case of pastiche. Indeed, it appears, therefore, that the continllous assumption of the appellation "pastiche" in the Postmodernist discourse could reveal its link to Postmodernism and Postmodernity in general. While parody and pastiche are not new phenomena, the question is why, ill our time, these concepts should be so acutely present in the discourse of literary theory - especially in theoretic contributions on Postmodernism and/or Postmodernis! texts. However, an investigation of the studies done on Postmodernist drama/theatre reveals a distinct lack of reflection about the role of parody and pastiche and a disturbing absence of publication on the the subject. This state of affairs reveals a conspicuous delay in terms of theoretical deliberation when compared to other investigat1ve practices, i.e. literary criticism and philosophy. This study, then, is essentially interested in transposing the present emphasis on parody and pastiche found in contemporary literary theory to Postmodernist drama/theatre. The final objective of this study is to explore the impact of the concepts of parody and pastiche on twentieth century drama/theatre and their possible contribution to a better understanding of the elusive term "Postmodemist drama/theatre". / Afrikaans and Theory of Literature / D. Litt. et Phil. (Literature)

Paganini's 24th caprice still remains to this day one of the most celebrated themes in classical music history. Many composers have used this theme to create variations and each composer attempted to produce stylistically unique variations on this piece. Hamelin's Variations on a Theme of Paganini stands out because his piece incorporates musical borrowing and many different composers' styles. His variations integrate music from different centuries, using pastiche and musical borrowing from figures such as Beethoven, Liszt, Brahms, Chopin, and Rachmaninoff. More provocatively, Hamelin's variations reach outside of Classical music, even adopting elements from salsa and friska. The spectrum of composers and styles included in this set are so radical and shocking that it creates a parody of not only Paganini's theme, but also the tradition of theme and variation pieces it has inspired. Due to its multiple variations juxtaposing extremely different styles, Hamelin's Variations on a Theme of Paganini presents the listener with a musical puzzle that is designed to invoke surprise. The juxtapositions of extremely different styles in these variations create disjointed variations with polystylism. The polystylism in this work diversifies his variations, while unifying these seemingly unbalanced movements through broad musical references. As such, both performers and listeners stand to benefit from a detailed, critical examination of the piece. I consider not just the musical sources themselves, but also the ways in which they interact, paying close attention to Hamelin's use of parody and humor.