Le comte Ory is an opéra

Opera

Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...

 written by Gioachino Rossini in 1828. Some of the music originates from his opera Il viaggio a Reims

Il viaggio a Reims

Il viaggio a Reims, ossia L'albergo del giglio d'oro is an operatic dramma giocoso, originally performed in three acts, by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Balocchi, based in part on Corinne, ou L'Italie by Mme de Staël.Rossini's last opera in the Italian language Il viaggio a...

written three years earlier for the coronation

Coronation

A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...

 of Charles X

Charles X of France

Charles X was known for most of his life as the Comte d'Artois before he reigned as King of France and of Navarre from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. A younger brother to Kings Louis XVI and Louis XVIII, he supported the latter in exile and eventually succeeded him...

. The French libretto was by Eugène Scribe

Eugène Scribe

Augustin Eugène Scribe , was a French dramatist and librettist. He is best known for the perfection of the so-called "well-made play" . This dramatic formula was a mainstay of popular theater for over 100 years.-Biography:...

 and Charles-Gaspard Delestre-Poirson

Charles-Gaspard Delestre-Poirson

Charles-Gaspard Delestre-Poirson Auguste-Simon-Jean-Chrysostome Poirson, known as Delestre-Poirson was a French playwright and theatre director....

 adapted from a comedy they had first written in 1817.

The work is ostensibly a comic opera

Comic opera

Comic opera denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending.Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a new operatic genre, opera buffa, emerged as an alternative to opera seria...

 in that the story is humorous, even farcical. However it was devised for the Opéra

Académie Royale de Musique

The Salle Le Peletier was the home of the Paris Opera from 1821 until the building was destroyed by fire in 1873. The theatre was designed and constructed by the architect François Debret on the site of the former Hôtel de Choiseul...

 rather than for the Théatre de l'Opéra-Comique

Opéra-Comique

The Opéra-Comique is a Parisian opera company, which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with, and for a time took the name of its chief rival the Comédie-Italienne at the Hôtel de Bourgogne, and was also called the...

 and there are structural inconsistencies with the contemporary opéra comique

Opéra comique

Opéra comique is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged out of the popular opéra comiques en vaudevilles of the Fair Theatres of St Germain and St Laurent , which combined existing popular tunes with spoken sections...

genre: whereas the latter consists of relatively short lyrical numbers and spoken dialogue, Le Comte Ory consists of "highly developed, even massive musical forms linked by accompanied recitative

Recitative

Recitative , also known by its Italian name "recitativo" , is a style of delivery in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms of ordinary speech...

.Although the opera contains some of Rossini's most colorful orchestral writing, the quaint, brief overture is oddly restrained and unassuming, ending with a whisper of pizzicato

Pizzicato

Pizzicato is a playing technique that involves plucking the strings of a string instrument. The exact technique varies somewhat depending on the type of stringed instrument....

 strings.

Performance history

It was first performed on 20 August 1828 at the Salle Le Peletier by the Paris Opera

Paris Opera

The Paris Opera is the primary opera company of Paris, France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the Académie d'Opéra and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and renamed the Académie Royale de Musique...

. It was given in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 at the King's Theatre

Her Majesty's Theatre

Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre, in Haymarket, City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who established the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art at the theatre...

 in Italian

Italian language

Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...

 on 28 February 1829, in New Orleans at the Théâtre d'Orléans on 16 December 1830 and in New York on 22 August 1831.

The opera is performed infrequently and, between 2005 and 2009, it stands at number 187 with 16 total performances as listed on Operabase.com. That number was increased in April 2011 when the opera received its premiere performances at the Metropolitan Opera

Metropolitan Opera

The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...

 in New York. The cast included Juan Diego Florez

Juan Diego Flórez

Juan Diego Flórez is a Peruvian operatic tenor, particularly known for his roles in bel canto operas. On June 4, 2007, he received his country's highest decoration, the Gran Cruz de la Orden del Sol del Perú....

, Diana Damrau

Diana Damrau

Diana Damrau is a German lyric coloratura soprano of the operatic stage.-Biography:Diana Damrau was born in 1971 in Günzburg, Bavaria, Germany, and began her operatic studies with Carmen Hanganu at the Musikhochschule in Würzburg. After graduating from music conservatory she worked in Salzburg...

 and Joyce DiDonato

Joyce DiDonato

Joyce DiDonato is an award-winning American operatic mezzo-soprano particularly admired for her interpretations of the works of Handel, Mozart, and Rossini...

, singing in a new production directed by Bartlett Sher

Bartlett Sher

Bartlett Sher , is an American theatre director. He received both the 2008 Tony Award and the Drama Desk Award for his direction of the Broadway revival of South Pacific. The New York Times has described him as "one of the most original and exciting directors, not only in the American theater but...

.

Roles

Role	Voice type	Premiere Cast, 20 August 1828 (Conductor: François Antoine Habeneck François Antoine Habeneck François Antoine Habeneck was a French violinist and conductor.- Early life :Habeneck was born at Mézières, the son of a musician in a French regimental band. During his early youth, Habeneck was taught by his father, and at the age of ten played concertos in public... )
Count Ory	tenor Tenor The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...	Adolphe Nourrit Adolphe Nourrit Adolphe Nourrit was a French operatic tenor, librettist, and composer. One of the most esteemed opera singers of the 1820s and 1830s, he was particularly associated with the works of Gioachino Rossini....
Tutor	baritone Baritone Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...	Nicolas Levasseur Nicolas Levasseur Nicolas Levasseur was a French bass, particularly associated with Rossini roles.Born Nicolas-Prosper Levasseur at Bresle, Somme, he studied at the Paris Music Conservatory from 1807 to 1811, with Pierre-Jean Garat. He made his professional debut at the Paris Opéra in 1813, as Osman Pacha, in La...
Isolier	mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...	Constance Jawureck Constance Jawureck Constance Jawureck was a French mezzo-soprano opera singer.The daughter of a German musician, she was born in Paris and entered the Paris Conservatory at the age of 14 where she studied singing under Plantade and Garat and acting under Baptiste...
Raimbaud	baritone	Henri-Bernard Dabadie Henri-Bernard Dabadie Henri-Bernard Dabadie was a French baritone, particularly associated with Rossini and Auber roles.- Life and career :...
Countess of Formoutiers	soprano Soprano A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...	Laure Cinti-Damoreau Laure Cinti-Damoreau Laura Cinti-Damoreau was a French soprano particularly associated with Rossini roles.- Life and career :...
Ragonde	mezzo-soprano	Mori
Alice	soprano
1st Knight	tenor	Alexis Dupont
2nd Knight	tenor	Jean-Étienne-Auguste Massol Jean-Étienne-Auguste Massol Jean-Étienne-Auguste Massol was a French operatic tenor and later baritone who sang in the world premieres of many French operas....
3rd Knight	baritone	Henri-Bernard Dabadie the younger
4th Knight	baritone	Ferdinand Prévôt Ferdinand Prévôt Ferdinand Prévôt was an French operatic baritone. His surname is also found spelt as Prevot or Prévost....
Chorus of Ory's men, ladies, crusaders, peasants

Act 1

The countryside before the castle of Formoutiers

The lords and men of Formoutiers have been away on a crusade. Count Ory, who is in love with the countess Adèle, takes advantage of the situation. Hoping to win her hand, he disguises himself as a hermit aided by Raimbaud, his friend. Raimbaud announces that a wise hermit will visit the village to offer advice on matters of the heart. The castle is filled with women waiting for their husbands to return from the crusades. Ory's page Isolier is in love with the countess. Isolier confides his love to the "hermit" (Count Ory in disguise) and explains his plan to sneak into the castle disguised as a female pilgrim.

The countess consults the hermit about a cure for her melancholia. He proposes that she fall in love, which she promptly does, with Isolier. The "hermit" warns her not to trust the page. Everyone is shocked when the Tutor reveals Ory's identity. The countess receives a letter announcing her brother's return.

Act 2

A large room in the castle

The countess and her attendants admit a group of female pilgrims awaiting their husbands' return from the crusade. This time the pilgrims are actually Ory and his men in disguise. Ory's new disguise is as "Sister Colette." Missing something to drink with dinner, Raimbaud breaks into the castle wine cellar and returns with enough for everyone. They toast the countess's absent brother. Isolier recognizes Ory and reveals his identity to Adèle. Isolier also tells the waiting women that their husbands will be back by midnight.

After everyone is in bed, Ory enters countess Adèle's room. He woos her, not realizing in the dark that it is Isolier's hand he is holding. The men return from the crusade. Isolier reveals himself and helps Count Ory escape from the castle.

Recordings

Year	Cast: Le Comte Ory La Comtesse Adèle Isolier Ragonde Raimbaud Le Gouverneur	Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra	Label
1959	Michel Sénéchal Michel Sénéchal Michel Sénéchal is a French tenor, particularly associated with French and Italian character roles in a repertory ranging from Baroque to contemporary works.- Life and career :... Sari Barabas Sari Barabas Sari Barabas is a Hungarian operatic soprano, particularly associated with coloratura roles. She was born in Budapest.She planned to be a dancer, but after an injury she turned to singing... Cora Canne-Meijer Monica Sinclair Monica Sinclair Monica Sinclair was a British operatic contralto, who sang many roles with the Royal Opera, Covent Garden during the 1950s and 1960s, and appeared on stage and in recordings with Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti, Sir Thomas Beecham, Sir Malcolm Sargent, and many others... Robert Massard Robert Massard Robert Massard is a French baritone, primarily associated with the French repertory, one of the few outstanding French opera singers of the postwar era.- Career :Massard was born in Pau, France, and was mainly self-taught...	Vittorio Gui Vittorio Gui Vittorio Gui was an Italian conductor and composer.Gui was born in Rome in 1885. In 1933 Bruno Walter invited him to be guest conductor at the Salzburg Festival.... Orchestra and Chorus of RAI Torino	Audio CD: Arkadia Cat: MP 458.2; Living Stage Cat: LS 4035130
1979	Rockwell Blake Rockwell Blake Rockwell Blake is an American operatic tenor, particularly known for his roles in Rossini operas. He was the first winner of the Richard Tucker Award.-Biography:... Ashley Putnam Ashley Putnam Ashley Putnam is an American soprano from New York City. Her professional singing career began in 1976 and has spanned over 30 years.-Early Life & Career:... Faith Esham Jane Shaulis David Holloway David Holloway David Holloway may refer to:* David Holloway , linebacker in the National Football League* David Holloway , American opera singer who sang leading roles for 10 seasons with the Metropolitan Opera...	Imre Pallo New York City Opera Orchestra and Chorus (Live Recording of a performance at the New York City Opera New York City Opera The New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and... , September)	Audio CD: Celestial Audio (CA 368)
1988	John Aler John Aler John Aler is an American lyric tenor who performs in concerts, recitals, and operas. He is particularly known for his interpretations of the works of Mozart, Rossini, Donizetti, Bellini, and Handel.... Sumi Jo Diana Montague Diana Montague Diana Montague is a British mezzo-soprano known for her performances in opera and as a concert singer.-Biography:She was born in Winchester and educated at the Testwood School, the Winchester School of Art and the Royal Northern College of Music... Raquel Pierotti Gino Quilico Gino Quilico Gino Quilico, OC is a Canadian lyric baritone of Italian descent and the son of Canadian baritone Louis Quilico and Lina Pizzolongo.-Early life:... Gilles Cachemaille Francis Dudziak & Nicolas Rivenq (Chevaliers)	John Eliot Gardiner John Eliot Gardiner Sir John Eliot Gardiner CBE FKC is an English conductor. He founded the Monteverdi Choir , the English Baroque Soloists and the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique... Orchestre et choeur de l'Opéra de Lyon	Audio CD: Philips Classics (422 406-2) (P) 1989
1995	William Matteuzzi William Matteuzzi William Matteuzzi is an Italian operatic tenor renowned for his impressive vocal range and prominent upper register, reaching a high F in full voice., which enabled him to participate in the recent revival of the tenore contraltino repertoire... Sumi Jo Marie-Ange Todorovitch Nadine Chery Jean-Luc Chaignaud Gregory Reinhart Gregory Reinhart Gregory Reinhart is an American bass opera singer. He is noted for an extremely wide repertory which ranges from early music to the world premieres of several contemporary operas including Lowell Liebermann's The Picture of Dorian Gray, Philippe Manoury's K..., and Pascal Dusapin's Perelà, uomo di...	Evelino Pidò Orchestre Européen du Festival Choeur du Festival, Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence Aix , or Aix-en-Provence to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, is a city-commune in southern France, some north of Marseille. It is in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, in the département of Bouches-du-Rhône, of which it is a subprefecture. The population of Aix is... (TV recording from Festival d'Aix-en-Provence, July 1995) Stage directed by Marcel Maréchal Produced by Bel Air Media	TV live broadcast (France 2 France 2 France 2 is a French public national television channel. It is part of the state-owned France Télévisions group, along with France 3, France 4, France 5 and France Ô... )
1997	Marc Laho Marc Laho - Biography :Laho was born in Seraing, Belgium. He studied at the Royal Conservatory of Liège in Belgium and later with Luigi Alva, Alain Vanzo, and Gabriel Bacquier. He made his professional opera debut at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo in 1989 as l'officier in Massenet's Thérèse... Annick Massis Annick Massis - Biography :She worked as a school teacher before going to study at the Conservatoire Francis Poulenc in Paris. Her stage career began in Toulouse in the early 1990s, where she performed in operas by Mozart as well as playing the role of Leila in Bizet's The Pearl Fishers.In 1999, she took the... Diana Montague Jane Shaulis Ludovic Tézier Julien Robbins	Andrew Davis Andrew Davis Andrew Davis is the name of:* Andrew Jackson Davis , American spiritualist* Andy Davis , Washington Redskins player* Andrew Davis , American film director* Andrew M... London Philharmonic Orchestra London Philharmonic Orchestra The London Philharmonic Orchestra , based in London, is one of the major orchestras of the United Kingdom, and is based in the Royal Festival Hall. In addition, the LPO is the main resident orchestra of the Glyndebourne Festival Opera...  and the Glyndebourne Festival Chorus (Video recording of a performance at the Glyndebourne Festival, July) stage directed by Jérôme Savary Jérôme Savary Jérôme Savary is a French theater director and actor. His work has democratized and widened the appeal of musical theater in France, drawing together and blending such genres as opera, operetta, and musical comedy.- Biography :...	DVD: NVC Arts Cat: 0630 18646-2; Kultur Cat: D 2983
2002	Huw Rhys-Evans Linda Gerrard Luisa Islam-ALi-Zade Luca Salsi Gloria Montanari Wojtek Gierlach Sofia Soloviy (Alice)	Brad Cohen Brad Cohen Brad Cohen is an American motivational speaker and an award-winning teacher and author who has severe Tourette syndrome . Cohen described his experiences growing up with the condition in his book, Front of the Class: How Tourette Syndrome Made Me the Teacher I Never Had, co-authored with Lisa Wysocky... Czech Chamber Soloits, Brno Brno Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District... Czech Philharmonic Choir, Brno (Live recording from Rossini in Wildbad, July 2002)	Audio CD: Naxos (2007)
2003	Juan Diego Flórez Juan Diego Flórez Juan Diego Flórez is a Peruvian operatic tenor, particularly known for his roles in bel canto operas. On June 4, 2007, he received his country's highest decoration, the Gran Cruz de la Orden del Sol del Perú.... Stefania Bonfadelli Stefania Bonfadelli Stefania Bonfadelli is an Italian operatic soprano.She began studying pianoforte at eight years of age and singing at fourteen in Verona, and later continued these studies in Paris and Vienna. Her operatic debut was with I puritani in 1997 at the Vienna State Opera... Marie-Ange Todorovitch Bruno Praticò Marina De Liso Alastair Miles Rossella Bevacqua (Alice)	Jesús López Cobos Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna Coro da Camera di Praga (chorus master: Lubomír Mátl (Live recording at Teatro Rossini, from Rossini Opera Festival Rossini Opera Festival The Rossini Opera Festival is an opera festival held in August of each year in Pesaro, Italy, the birthplace of the opera composer Gioachino Rossini.... , Pesaro Pesaro Pesaro is a town and comune in the Italian region of the Marche, capital of the Pesaro e Urbino province, on the Adriatic. According to the 2007 census, its population was 92,206.... , 10,13,16,19, 22 August,) Stage directed, designed by Lluís Pasqual	CD: Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon is a German classical record label which was the foundation of the future corporation to be known as PolyGram. It is now part of Universal Music Group since its acquisition and absorption of PolyGram in 1999, and it is also UMG's oldest active label...
2011	Juan Diego Flórez Juan Diego Flórez Juan Diego Flórez is a Peruvian operatic tenor, particularly known for his roles in bel canto operas. On June 4, 2007, he received his country's highest decoration, the Gran Cruz de la Orden del Sol del Perú.... Diana Damrau Diana Damrau Diana Damrau is a German lyric coloratura soprano of the operatic stage.-Biography:Diana Damrau was born in 1971 in Günzburg, Bavaria, Germany, and began her operatic studies with Carmen Hanganu at the Musikhochschule in Würzburg. After graduating from music conservatory she worked in Salzburg... Joyce DiDonato Joyce DiDonato Joyce DiDonato is an award-winning American operatic mezzo-soprano particularly admired for her interpretations of the works of Handel, Mozart, and Rossini... Stéphane Degout Susanne Resmark Michele Pertusi Monica Yunus Monica Yunus Monica Yunus is a Bangladeshi-Russian-American operatic soprano who has performed with many of the world's finest opera companies and music ensembles...  (Alice)	Maurizio Benini Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Metropolitan Opera Chorus Stage directed by Bartlett Sher Bartlett Sher Bartlett Sher , is an American theatre director. He received both the 2008 Tony Award and the Drama Desk Award for his direction of the Broadway revival of South Pacific. The New York Times has described him as "one of the most original and exciting directors, not only in the American theater but... (HD Live from The Metropolitan Opera, New York, April 9th 2011)	HD Theatrical release