Louis-Aimé d'Auvigny (about 1738, in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

– after 1795, in

Tulchyn Tulchyn (, ; ; ; ; ; ) is a city in Vinnytsia Oblast (Oblast, province) of western Ukraine, in the historical region of Podolia. It is the Capital city, administrative center of Tulchyn Raion (Raion, district). Its population is 13,896 (2023 estim ...

,Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz, ''Pamiętniki czasów moich'', Warszawa, Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy, 1957, v. I, p. 55.

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, now

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

) was an 18th-century French dancer, ballet master, choreographer, and dance teacher.

Family

D'Auvigny was probably the son of a writer and historian Aymé-Jean Chabaille d'Auvigny de Morinval, step brother of dancer and dance teacher Nicolas-François-Hyacinthe Dubus, known by his stage name Hyacinthe, and of the comic actors Gabriel-Éléonor-Hervé Dubus, whose stage name was Soli (Sauly), and Pierre-Louis Dubus, whose stage name was Préville. His mother was their sister, Louise-Élisabeth Dubus (marriage 1737). In Stuttgart, he married dancer Marie Claudine Toscani (1746–1768) on 6 March 1764. She was the daughter of Italian comedians Giovanni Battista Toscani and Isabella Gafforia.Eberhard Schauer, ''Das Persolan des Württembergischen Hoftheaters 1750-1800. Ein Lexikon der Hofmusiker, Tänzer, Operisten und Hilfskräfte''. In: ''Musik und Musiker am Stuttgarter Hoftheater (1750-1918). Quellen und Studien'', Herausgegeben Reiner Nägle, Wurttembergische Landesbibliothek, Stuttgart, 2000, p. 57.

Artistic career

After making his debut in the

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

of the

Comédie-Italienne Comédie-Italienne () or Théâtre-Italien () are French names which have been used to refer to Italian-language theatre and opera when performed in France. The earliest recorded visits by Italian players were ''commedia dell'arte'' companies ...

in 1753 and of the

Comédie-Française The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...

in 1755 (two years after Préville), D'Auvigny spent some years in

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

where he danced with

Jean-Georges Noverre Jean-Georges Noverre (29 April 1727 19 October 1810) was a French dancer and ballet master, and is generally considered the creator of ''ballet d'action'', a precursor of the narrative ballets of the 19th century. His birthday is now observed a ...

. In 1760, Noverre called him to the court of

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

and gradually entrusted him with the responsibility of ballet. When Noverre left in 1767, D'Auvigny was appointed

ballet master A ballet master (also balletmaster, ballet mistress, ''premier maître de ballet'' or ''premier maître de ballet en chef'') is an employee of a ballet company who is responsible for the level of competence of the dancers in their company. In mo ...

and kept this position until Easter 1771. In 1770, he set among others the

s of '' Calliroe'',

tragédie en musique ''Tragédie en musique'' (, musical tragedy), also known as ''tragédie lyrique'' (, lyric tragedy), is a genre of French opera introduced by Jean-Baptiste Lully and used by his followers until the second half of the eighteenth century. Operas i ...

Antonio Sacchini Antonio Maria Gasparo Gioacchino Sacchini (14 June 1730 – 6 October 1786) was an Italian classical period (music), classical era composer, best known for his operas. Sacchini was born in Florence, but raised in Naples, where he received his m ...

presented at the theatre of

Ludwigsburg Palace Ludwigsburg Palace, nicknamed the "Versailles of Swabia", is a 452-room palace complex of 18 buildings located in Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Its total area, including the gardens, is the largest palatial estate in the country. T ...

. In July 1772, he danced in Paris. In the winter and spring 1772/1773 he was a

at the King's Theater on Haymarket in London.

Choreographic works

In Palace Theater, Ludwigsburg * 1768: Three ballets, music by

Florian Johann Deller Florian Johann Deller (bapt. 2 May 1729 in Drosendorf, Lower Austria – 19 September 1773 in Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it t ...

(in Niccolo Jommelli's ''Fetonte'') * 1768: ''Il matrimonio improviso'', music by Florian Johann Deller (in Niccolo Jommelli's ''La schiava liberata'') * 1768: ''Le astuzie della fata Urgela'', music by Florian Johann Deller (in Niccolo Jommelli's ''La schiava liberata'') * 1770: ''Ballo allegorico'', music by Florian Johann Deller (in

's '' Calliroe'') In

Castle Solitude Solitude Palace () is a Rococo ''schloss'' and hunting retreat commissioned by Charles Eugene, Duke of Württemberg. It was designed by and Philippe de La Guêpière, and constructed from 1764 to 1769. It is located on an elongated ridge betwe ...

* 1770: ''La constance'', music by Florian Johann Deller (in Antonio Beroni's ''L’amore in musica'') * 1770: ''Ballo polacco'', music by Florian Johann Deller (in Antonio Beroni's ''L’amore in musica'') In King's Theatre in the Haymarket, London * 1773: ''Grand Serious Ballet'' in Antonio Sacchini's ''Il Cid'' * 1773: ''Grand Chaconne'' in Antonio Sacchini's ''Il Cid'' * 1773: ''Pastoral Dance'' in Antonio Sacchini's ''Il Cid'' * 1773: ''L’Isle désert'' in Antonio Sacchini's ''Il Cid'' * 1773: ''Apollo and Venus'' in Gaetano Pugnani's ''Apollo et Issea'' * 1773: ''La Fête du Village'' in Gaetano Pugnani's ''Apollo et Issea'' * 1773: ''Les Sauvages'' in Gaetano Pugnani's ''Apollo et Issea'' * 1773: ''Les Tartares'' in Antonio Sacchini's ''Tamerlano'' * 1773: ''Grand Ballet'' in

Christoph Willibald Gluck Christoph Willibald (Ritter von) Gluck (; ; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period (music), classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of th ...

's ''

Orfeo ed Euridice (; French: '; English: ''Orpheus and Eurydice'') is an opera composed by Christoph Willibald Gluck, based on the myth of Orpheus and set to a libretto by Ranieri de' Calzabigi. It belongs to the genre of the '' azione teatrale'', meaning an ...

Dancing-master in Poland

In December 1773, he danced at the

Royal Opera of Versailles The Royal Opera of Versailles () is the main theatre and opera house of the Palace of Versailles. Designed by Ange-Jacques Gabriel, it is also known as the Théâtre Gabriel. The interior decoration by Augustin Pajou is constructed almost entirel ...

, There he met the Polish prince

Adam Kazimierz Czartoryski Prince Adam Kazimierz Czartoryski (1 December 1734 – 19 March 1823) was an influential Polish aristocrat, writer, literary and theater critic, linguist, traveller and statesman. He was a great patron of arts and a candidate for the Polish cro ...

and his wife Izabela, who offered him a job in Poland. He became a dance teacher at Warsaw in Nobles' Academy of the Corps of Cadets (1774–1794) and a private teacher of the children of the Czartoryski princes in their residences in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

(in the Blue Palace), in Powązki near Warsaw (Izabela Czartoryska's summer residence, modeled on

Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette (; ; Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last List of French royal consorts, queen of France before the French Revolution and the establishment of the French First Republic. She was the ...

's Hameau de la Reine) and sometimes at the Czartoryski Palace in

Puławy Puławy (, also written Pulawy) is a city in eastern Poland, in Lesser Poland's Lublin Voivodeship, at the confluence of the Vistula and Kurówka River, Kurówka Rivers. Puławy is the capital of Puławy County. The city's 2019 population was Cen ...

. From 1795, he worked as a dance teacher in the residence of count

Stanisław Szczęsny Potocki Count Stanisław Szczęsny Feliks Potocki (; 1751–1805), of the Piława coat of arms, known as Szczęsny PotockiE. Rostworowski, Potocki Stanisław Szczęsny (Feliks) herbu Pilawa, n:Polski Słownik Biograficzny, t. XXVIII, Wrocław–Wars ...

. D'Auvigny's death belongs to

Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz ( , ; 6 February 1758 – 21 May 1841) was a Polish poet, playwright and statesman. He was a leading advocate for the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth's Constitution of 3 May 1791. Early life and education Julian Ursyn Ni ...

's pen: "already advanced in years, a resident of Tulchyn, he took a young wife, and died on his wedding night – a harsh lesson", Niemcewicz comments, "for old men". He was the father of painter-miniaturist Charles (Carl, Karol) d'Auvigny (1 September 1765, Ludwigsburg – 4 February 1830, Warsaw"Kurier Warszawski", number 35 from 1830, from 6 February 1830, p. 169.).

Family

Artistic career

Choreographic works

Dancing-master in Poland

Notes

References

See also