Old Boney...

No, not a euphamism...somewhat derogitory term for Napoleon by the British at the beginning of the 19th Century.

I was realizing, while continuing to slog my way through Thackeray's "Vanity Fair," that I've been somewhat stuck in Napoleon's campaign, both at home and at work. And by "slog," I don't mean that I'm not enjoying it. I find the book to be quite witty and really insightful since I'm working on a show that takes place at the same time, but his writing is very dense and full of allusions and vernacular that doesn't exist commonly in today's society.

So, I read "Vanity Fair" at home and, while delighting in the nastiness of Becky Crawley (nee Sharp) and the stupidity of her many admirers, I find myself learning a good deal about both the Napoleonic wars and the British attitudes towards them. The last few chapters, in fact, included a fairly detailed account of the battles of Quatre-Bras and Waterloo - not from the point of view of a soldier, but from the points of view of the many British citizens holed up in Belgium, waiting for news from the regiments. It's fascinated me.

Fascinated me more, I think, because I am in the middle of working on a show that takes place during Napoleon's earlier campaigns (before his fall and rise again) in 1805/1806. The difference being that "Fille Du Regiment" is taken completely from the French point of view save a few moments at the beginning when we see the German peasants shrieking and trembling as the French army approaches.

By sheer coincidence I picked out a book that was written by a contemporary of Donizetti and have become suddenly fascinated by this period of time. Both men are writing about the same war from opposing viewpoints. I realize that both pieces of work are meant to be comedies, but I think that comedies truly reveal the attitudes and prejudices of the day, and I think this is certainly true for "Vanity Fair," and "Fille Du Regiment." I'm not fully convinced that Donizetti wasn't making fun of France's attitudes and nationalism right in front of their face . . .

I love self-taught moments. I think the last time I thought about Napoleon was in my high school French class, where we were all obliged to sing, "Napoleon avait cinq-cent soldats!" at the top of our lungs with Mme. Wetzel, and I wondered briefly about the idolotry of such hostile figures by various countries (including ours) around the world . . . and then here I am thrust into the middle of this history fourteen years later.

Thank heavens we never stop learning.