Understanding History and Society through Images, 1776-1914

Tableaux Vivants

Tableaux vivants are one of the most innocent, entertaining, and instructive amusements for the young, engendering a love for and appreciation of art. ¹

Tableaux vivant is often referred to as a playful pastime, but it has also served significant educational and recreational purposes in the cultural history of the United States. Translated from French, tableaux vivant means 'living pictures.' ² The genre peaked in popularity between 1830 and 1920. During a performance of tableaux vivant, a cast of characters represented scenes from literature, art, history, or everyday life on a stage. After the curtain went up, the models remained silent and frozen for roughly thirty seconds. Particular emphasis was placed on staging, pose, costume, make-up, lighting, and the facial expression of the models. ³ Sometimes a poem or music accompanied the scene, and often a large wooden frame outlined the perimeter of the stage, so as to reference the frame of a painted canvas. ⁴

The tableaux vivant was a new fad in the America of the 1840's. It had vague, distant origins in the pageants of medieval royal processions and in Christmas nativity scenes.

By mid-century theatrical representations of art by person or group posed silently and motionless became widely know in the United States. Tableaux appeared on the public stage but the private parlor or home provided greater freedom. ⁵

During the later part of the 19th century, tableaux vivant spread throughout the country via the publication of how-to manuals, elaborate instruction for staging performances, but only in the large houses of the wealthy could these have been followed to the letter. As galleries were few, the tableaux played an important role in expanding the visual awareness of Americans. ⁶

The genre was primarily used by young adults as a way to discover their group and individual identities. The historian David Glassberg explained how tableaux vivant was used in local pageantry. Small towns and cities would often host parades featuring floats carrying women in tableaux vivant, reenacting pilgrim scenes or allegorical scenes such as "Columbia," or "the Thirteen Original States." ⁷ Monika Elbert focused on how the growing middle class of women used tableaux vivant to alter their personal identities. She explored how women used the genre privately to try on new costumes and characters, some of which were controversial, as a way to merge their public and private self. In both cases, the action of creating tableaux vivant allowed people to explore new phases of their identity. ⁸

When thinking about the benefits today's students, tableaux vivants offer a playful, interactive way to spark discussions based on participation in elements of the painting. In the words of Howard Gardner's Frames of Mind: Multiple Intelligence Theory (1985 page 239), tableaux speak to the tactile-kinesthetic in all of us and can extend comprehension techniques, such as free writing and free drawing on one's interpretation of the picture. As tableaux is a team effort, participating can build self-esteem in shy children, as many may feel less anxious about taking part in a silent group activity than about interpreting orally in front of peers. In this way, tableaux address our interpersonal (working with others) and intrapersonal (learning about ourselves) intelligences. ⁹

Additionally, tableaux vivants also offer a concrete reference to spark discussion and writing, as children describe the scenarios depicted and use the information to be creative thinkers and writers. Recognizing the moment frozen in time by the painting allows the students to begin to think about what might have been occurring in the time just before or the moments directly after the image in the painting. ¹⁰

Museum visits offer an opportunity for students, with guidance from teachers and docents, to begin the adventure of investigating some of these themes through tableaux vivants:

Identity: In front of a sculpture or painting, invite students to slowly take on the pose and facial expression of the subject. Have them freeze for a few seconds and guide their awareness to various parts of their body to make adjustments based on what they see. Break from the pose and look back at the painting or sculpture. Discuss how the pose and facial expression reveal clues to the subject's identity. Try another tableau vivant, but this time, have students change their pose and facial expression. What would they change or do differently?

Character: The addition of props and costumes can instantly help a student take on a character. Split the class up into actors and directors. Have the actors freeze in a scene from a painting or sculpture, while the directors instruct their poses and facial expressions using the work of art as reference. While the actors remain frozen, have the directors discuss new aspects of the work of art that were revealed to them in the process of creating the tableau vivant. Have the actors break their pose and share their new insights about the work of art now that they have become the character.

Narrative: Break students up into small groups. Invite each group to create a tableau vivant (perhaps using directors and actors depending on numbers). Then, ask each group to create a before and after tableau vivant scene. Have each group share their three tableau vivant scenes and then discuss which parts of the painting or sculpture influenced their narratives.

Politics: Briefly describe the genre of tableaux vivant to students and explain how a piece of literature was often read to an audience during the performance. Invite students to create a tableau vivant of a painting or sculpture. While students remain frozen, read a text that provides contextual information for the work of art, such as a historic speech or a quote from the artist. Look back at the painting or sculpture and discuss their new insights. ¹¹

For the purposes of this unit, the paintings selected are two related styles, conversation painting and genre painting, both in this case showing children and adolescents in various circumstances. These choices are meant to evoke narratives.

Certainly there are endless possibilities with the current options for viewing fine art through digital access from museums around the world. The advantage to choosing a local museum, of course, is access to the real thing, the actual painting. Many museums have outreach programs or education departments that can support teachers and student visitors by planning visits, tours and extended activities.