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In: Plays/Films/Dramas·Mythology, Legends & Folklore·Nobel Prizes in Literature
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Maurice Maeterlinck’s “The Blue Bird” is a six‑act fairy play that begins in a modest wood‑cutter’s cottage, where the two children, Tyltyl and Mytyl, awaken on Christmas Eve to the glow of a distant party. The opening scene is meticulously staged, listing every prop, from a sugar‑loaf to a turtle‑dove cage, and introducing a cast of costumed figures that range from the humble family to a haughty fairy, Bérylune. The dialogue quickly establishes the children’s yearning for the riches of the richer neighbours and the sudden arrival of the fairy, who demands a blue bird to cure her ill daughter. The play’s structure is laid out in the front matter, noting a newly added Act IV, “Palace of Happiness,” and the detailed costume notes that hint at the symbolic transformations to follow.
The language reflects the Symbolist era of the early twentieth century, with lyrical exchanges and a focus on mood rather than plot mechanics. Maeterlinck’s style is spare yet evocative, allowing the fantastical elements to emerge through the children’s naive questions and the fairy’s imperious demands. Readers who appreciate theatrical works that blend folklore with philosophical undertones, especially those interested in the interplay of innocence and desire, will find this piece rewarding. Its rich visual descriptions and the subtle moral questions it raises make it a compelling experience for lovers of classic drama and fairy‑tale adaptations.
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TYLTYL wears the dress of Hop o' my Thumb in Perrault's Tales. Scarlet knickerbockers, pale-blue jacket, white stockings, tan shoes.
MYTYL is dressed like Gretel or Little Red Riding-hood.
LIGHT.--The "moon-coloured" dress in Perrault's Peau d'âne; that is to say, pale gold shot with silver, shimmering gauzes, forming a sort of rays, etc. Neo-Grecian or Anglo-Grecian (à la Walter Crane) or even more or less Empire style: a high waist, bare arms, etc. Head-dress: a sort of diadem or even a light crown.
THE FAIRY BÉRYLUNE and NEIGHBOUR BERLINGOT.--The traditional dress of the poor women in fairy-tales. If desired, the transformation of the Fairy into a princess in Act I may be omitted.
DADDY TYL, MUMMY TYL, GAFFER TYL and GRANNY TYL.--The traditional costume of the German wood-cutters and peasants in Grimm's Tales.
TYLTYL'S BROTHERS AND SISTERS.--Different forms of the Hop-o'-my-Thumb costume.
TIME.--Traditional dress of Time: a wide black or dark-blue cloak, a streaming white beard, scythe and hour-glass.
NIGHT.--Ample black garments, covered with mysterious stars and "shot" with reddish-brown reflections. Veils, dark poppies, etc.
THE NEIGHBOUR'S LITTLE GIRL.--Bright fair hair; a long white frock.
THE DOG,--Red dress-coat, white breeches, top-boots, a shiny hat. The costume suggests that of John Bull.
THE CAT.--The costume of Puss In Boots: powdered wig, three-cornered hat, violet or sky-blue coat, dress-sword, etc.
N.B.--The heads of the DOG and the CAT should be only discreetly animalised.
THE LUXURIES.--Before the transformation: wide, heavy mantles in red and yellow brocade; enormous fat jewels, etc. After the transformation: chocolate or coffee-coloured tights, giving the impression of unadorned dancing-jacks.
THE HAPPINESSES OF THE HOME.--Dresses of various colours, or, if preferred, costumes of peasants, shepherds, wood-cutters and so on, but idealised and interpreted fairy-fashion.
THE GREAT JOYS.--As stated in the text, shimmering dresses in soft and subtle shades: rose-awakening, water's-smile, amber-dew, blue-of-dawn, etc.
MATERNAL LOVE.--Dress very similar to the dress worn by Light, that is to say, supple and almost transparent veils, as of a Greek statue, and, in so far as possible, white. Pearls and other stones as rich and numerous as may be desired, provided that they do not break the pure and candid harmony of the whole.
BREAD.--A rich pasha's dress. An ample crimson silk or velvet gown. A huge turban. A scimitar. An enormous stomach, red and puffed-out cheeks.
SUGAR.--A silk gown, cut like that of a eunuch in a seraglio, half blue and half white, to suggest the paper wrapper of a sugar-loaf. Eunuch's headdress.
FIRE.--Red tights, a vermilion cloak, with changing reflections, lined with gold. An aigrette of iridescent flames.
WATER.--A pale-blue or bluish-green dress, with transparent reflections and effects of rippling or trickling gauze, Neo-Grecian or Anglo-Grecian style. but fuller and more voluminous than that of LIGHT. Head-dress of aquatic flowers and seaweed.
THE ANIMALS.--Popular or peasant costumes.
THE TREES.--Dresses of different shades of green or the colour of the trunks of trees. Distinctive attributes in the shape of leaves or branches by which they can be recognised.
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