Eugène Hus

Pierre-Louis Stapleton (17 July 1758 in Brussels – 24 February 1823 in Brussels) was a ballet dancer and choreographer, born in the Austrian Netherlands who worked in France and the Netherlands. He was also known from around 1759 by the pseudonym Eugène Hus, after his stepfather Jean-Baptiste Hus.

Life

He was the son of Louis Stapleton, an Irish officer in the garrison at Brussels, and Elisabeth Bayard, a ballet dancer at the Théâtre de la Monnaie known by the pseudonym Mlle Bibi. Deserted by his father when he went off on campaign, Pierre-Louis soon got on the stage alongside his mother – aged around 4 he danced before prince Charles-Alexandre de Lorraine, who offered him 50 ducats in a gold box in recognition of his precocious talents, according to Hus's obituary in the Journal de Brussels. In 1762, Jean-Baptiste Hus arrived in Brussels as ballet master returning to the Théâtre de la Monnaie. Pierre-Louis was adopted by Hus (Elisabeth was Hus's mistress and later wife) and followed the couple on their wanderings, performing at Lyon (1764–67 and 1770–79), where Pierre-Louis began his career as a ballet master under Hus's guidance.

With Pierre Gardel and Auguste Vestris, Eugène Hus was one of the main founders of 19th century ballet and a witness to major political and artistic changes. He was the only living link between Noverre and Russian ballet, via the Petipa family.

Works

• 1784 : Le Ballon (Lyon, 9 February)
• 1789 : L'Oracle accompli (Bordeaux, 24 August)
• 1790 : Lausus et Lydie (Nantes)
• 1793 : Les Muses, ou le Triomphe d'Apollon (Paris, 12 December)
• 1796 : Lise et Colin ou La Surveillance inutile, (Paris, 4 August)
• 1797 : Psyché (Rouen, July)
• 1798 : Tout cède à l'amour (Bordeaux, August)
• 1799 : Kiki, ou l'Île imaginaire (Paris, 9 November)
• 1800 : Augustine et Benjamin, ou le Sargines de village (Paris, 4 November)
• 1801 : Les Chevaliers du soleil, ou Amour et dangers (Paris, 21 June)
• 1801 : L'Héroïne de Boston, ou les Français au Canada (Paris, 12 October)
• 1802 : Riquet à la houpe (Paris, 13 December)
• 1803 : La Fille mal gardée, ou Il n'est qu'un pas du mal au bien, after Dauberval (Paris, 13 February)
• 1803 : Jeanne d'Arc, ou la Pucelle d'Orléans (Paris, 15 April)
• 1804 : Les Hamadryades, ou l'Amour vengé (Bordeaux, 22 March)
• 1804 : Les Vendangeurs du Médoc, ou les Deux baillis dupés (Paris, 20 July)
• 1804 : Le Gascon gascon malgré lui (Paris, 17 November)
• 1805 : L'Ingénu, ou le Sauvage du Canada (Paris, 17 January)
• 1805 : Amanda (Paris, 31 July)
• 1805 : L'Enchanteur Azolin, ou le Visir imaginaire (Paris, 12 December)
• 1806 : La Dansomanie ou la Fête de M. Petit-Pas (Bordeaux, August)
• 1807 : Les Illustres fugitifs, ou les Trois journées (Paris, 8 January)
• 1810 : Le Retour du seigneur, ou la Dot (Carcassonne, 23 February)
• 1813 : La Pucelle d'Orléans (Paris, 10 November)
• 1815 : Je l'aurais gagé ! (Brussels, 30 March)
• 1817 : La Naissance du fils de Mars et de Flore, ou les Vœux accomplis (Brussels, 27 March)
• 1818 : La Fête des dames, ou la Journée du 19 janvier (Brussels, 19 January)
• 1818 : Le Nid d'amours, ou les Amours vengés (Brussels, 9 March)

References

• Eugène Hus at César (in French)