Nye Eventyr og Historier. Ny Samling [et]Tredie Række

First edition of the third series of Andersen’s tales. Two parts in one volume, published respectively on 30 March and 23 November 1872, each bearing an inscription by Andersen. He mentions the first in his diary (H. C. Andersens dagbøger, vol. IX, p. 247) and the second is recorded by Henry Tuxen (Anderseniana, vol. 4, 1958-59, p. 155).

Red cloth half binding, flat spine faded with gilt title and ruled in black, black cloth boards. First board with a slight lenghtwise crack, spine-ends and corners rubbed, small lack of material at the margin of the first board.

Rare collection of tales exceptionally inscribed twice by Hans Christian Andersen to his friend the celebrated dancer and choreographer Auguste Bournonville, called here “Balletdigter” (poet of ballet) in homage to his talent. The inscriptions appear on the half-title page of each part: “Vennen, Balletdigteren A. Bournonville fra hans Beundrer H.C. Andersen” [To the friend, the poet of ballet A. Bournonville from his admirer H.C. Andersen] and “Balletdigteren min geniale, trofaste Ven Hr. Balletmester Bournonville Hjerteligst H.C. Andersen” [To the poet of ballet, my brilliant and faithful friend the ballet-master Mr. Bournonville / Sincerely H.C. Andersen].

The dancer and ballet director of the Royal Danish Theatre remained one of Andersen’s greatest role-models: Andersen, who had aspired to be a dancer in his youth, but like many of his fairy-tale protagonists was born in “the wrong body” — relinquishing that career path, the now-famous storyteller made use of his writing talents for the stage, and collaborated on several occasions with Bournonville.

The dancer met the author during Andersen’s difficult beginnings at the Royal Danish Theatre. After his arrival alone in Copenhagen in 1819, Andersen aspired to build a career on stage which he considered a realm of magic and ecstasy, and fought desperately to make his place as a ballet dancer, actor or singer. He entered in 1821 as a pupil in the ballet class of Carl Dahlén, who had temporarily replaced Antoine Bournonville (Auguste’s father) at the head of the theatre. Andersen made a few unremarkable appearances and endured the criticism of his teachers, who mocked his gangly figure and awkward posture. The future author of the deeply autobiographical Ugly Duckling abandoned dancing but continued to observe the brilliant career of the young Auguste Bournonville — his exact contemporary, born the same day — as well as the famous dance school he was then founding in Copenhagen.

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Twenty years later, the renowned storyteller had replaced the failed dancer: Andersen returned to the Royal Theatre where the greatest artists of Denmark’s golden age gathered, and “collaborated closely with Bournonville both in the conception of works and in their staging, just as he was also a repeated inspiration for the ballet-master’s choreographic work with his own fairy-tales and theatrical projects” (Digterens & balletmesterens…, p. 15). His storytelling talents translated wonderfully into his opera libretti and theatre texts. Alongside Bournonville, who signed the staging and choreography of the dances of elves, Andersen had his first stage success with his fairy-comedy entitled Lykkens Blomst (The Flower of Happiness) and then with a lyrical and dramatic tale Liden Kirsten (Little Christine) also choreographed by his friend. The two men worked on several stage productions, maintained for decades a rich correspondence and exchanged poems expressing their mutual admiration. It was even in August Bournonville’s home, years later, that Andersen met and fell in love with the Swedish opera singer Jenny Lind — the famed “Nightingale of the North” — who rejected him and left the writer in deep distress.

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In the present collection which contains 17 tales, Andersen notably reconnects with his youthful passion in Dandse, dandse Dukke min! (“Dance, dance, doll of mine!”) where a little girl’s song animates her toys:

“Dance, dance, doll of mine!
Watch your steps and get in line;
One foot forward; watch your feet.
Dancing makes you slender, sweet.”

The previous year, Bournonville himself had drawn inspiration from Andersen’s tales to create the ballet Et Eventyr i Billeder (A Fairy-Tale in Pictures): “I climbed on stage and thanked Bournonville, who took me in his arms and asked me if I thought there was a little of my spirit in the ballet.” (Andersen’s diary, 26 December 1871).

A very rare double gesture of gratitude from the celebrated storyteller to his “poet of ballet”, a major figure of classical dance who was able to give life and movement to Andersen’s fairy-tale texts.