Merde

[Amy Reusch]

I thought it was on the Merde thread in the Archives, but it's not.

(Alexandra on the " good luck" thread)

I was wondering about the origin of this good luck salutation, and imagined the topic had probably already been discussed on Ballet Alert. I tried a "search" for it, but nothing came up... although it looks like there had been a thread on it once.

How can I find it? Or better, anybody know the provenance?

Is it just because it would be about the worst thing that could happen on stage?

[Mel Johnson]

The word itself is not merely "merde", but "MERDE!", which idiomatically carries with it a sense of "you go to hell!" It's a sort of way to avoid the Evil Eye, or the theater gremlins.

[Estelle]

Yes indeed, I think Major Mel is right: it desn't have to be understood literally, it's just an interjection meaning more or less "go to hell", and people say it instead of saying something positive in order to prevent bad luck.

I'd add that, in French, it's not specific to dance, some people would say that, for example, to a close friend taking an exam, or having an interview for a job (but only to someone close, because it's not a very polite expression ! Some people also say "I tell you the five-letter word" or "I tell you Cambronne's word" when they don't want to pronounce it.)

[Watermill]

I'm going to try and beat Major Mel to the punch....Here's an interesting article on the truth behind "Cambronne's word."

http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/mi..._cambronne.html

[Estelle]

Thanks for the link, Watermill!

But it is a bit strange that in that text, the word "meurt" (dies) is misspelled every time it is used !

[Mel Johnson]

Well, at least he didn't use "creve".

[drb]

The word itself is not merely "merde", but "MERDE!", which idiomatically carries with it a sense of "you go to hell!"  It's a sort of way to avoid the Evil Eye, or the theater gremlins.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'd been wondering about the use of the word "Merde!" in ballet. Of course one wouldn't want to use the expression "break a leg." Also on this thread its provenance seems to be traced to Waterloo.

Is it a universally accepted expression, or are some dancers offended by the term?

Amy Reusch's question above, "Is it just because it would be about the worst thing that could happen on stage?" makes a good point. However I've seen that happen two or three times, and each time the audience seemed not bothered at all. This was early in the career of a NYCB star, who still performs with the company, but no longer appears to have that problem. Kristin Sloan supplied the photo below of the long-ago offender:

http://www.phontographer.com/winger/archiv...io_the_don.html

[Hans]

Love the last paragraph drb!

I'd imagine that French-speaking dancers might be offended by the expression, but someone like Estelle would probably know more about that.

[carbro]

Well, wishing a person good luck is bad luck. So wishing a person bad luck must be good luck. Therefore, you wish a performer to break a leg -- bad for an actor, but too, too unthinkably horrific to say to a dancer. I think the term is meant not in the more literal sense, but more as an expletive. And since all ballet terminology is in French, could it be anything else?