Maître Péronilla
Encyclopedia
Maître Péronilla is an opéra bouffe
in three acts of 1878 with music by Jacques Offenbach
. The French
libretto was by the composer with Charles-Louis-Étienne Nuitter
and Paul Ferrier.
The sub-title was La femme à deux maris; the working title during the preparation of the libretto and composition had been Frimouskino, which Offenbach had drafted in the late 1860s. Composed in Nice
, Offenbach asked Nuitter and Ferrier to help him with the song lyrics as his regular collaborators, Meilhac and Halévy had distanced themselves in order to concentrate on other projects, including work with Lecocq.
Premiered at the Théâtre des Bouffes Parisiens
, the piece was taken off after less than two months, and Le timbale d’argent returned to the Bouffes. Reflecting on his many previous successes, when the opera failed to run more than 50 performances, Offenbach wrote to Ludovic Halévy
that ‘Offenbach’ was not to be found on the billboards for the 1878 Exhibition
.
The work is one of several by Offenbach with Spanish connections: Pépito, La Duchesse d’Albe and Les bavards
. The malagueña was inserted as an additional song for Fiorella in the Christmas Day revival of Les brigands
at the Théâtre de la Gaîté
in 1878.
Two lawsuits concerning the subject of the opera were brought - against Offenbach and after his death against the theatre manager Charles Comte - alleging that the subject matter had been plagiarized from a stage work by Oswald and Lévy.
The daughter of Péronilla, the leading chocolate maker in Madrid, the young and beautiful Manoëla, is to be married to old Don Guardona, to the displeasure of Ripardos, a soldier, and Frimouskino, a notary’s clerk. Léona, the sister of Péronilla, has arranged the wedding in order to thwart the attentions of the handsome music master Alvarès. He, having been dismissed by Léona, returns to Péronilla’s house. The marriage contract has already been signed, but Ripardos and Frimouskino in the dim light of the chapel manage to get Alvarès, not Don Guardona into religious union with Manoëla – thus giving her two husbands.
A group of servants sing of the futility of thwarting true young love. The newly-weds – or rather Manoëla and Alvarès – sit down to dine, joined next by all the wedding guests, including the other husband. Alvarès sings a malagueña. It is agreed to leave explanations to the next day, especially as Péronilla is ashamed of the business and cannot decide between the two new sons-in-law. All retire to bed. Manoëla and Alvarès, with the complicity of Ripardos and Frimouskino (and Péronilla turning a blind eye) are allowed to flee the house but are caught by the alguazils and Manoëla is forced to reside in a convent until the matter has been properly settled.
Opéra bouffe
Opéra bouffe is a genre of late 19th-century French operetta, closely associated with Jacques Offenbach, who produced many of them at the Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens that gave its name to the form....
in three acts of 1878 with music by Jacques Offenbach
Jacques Offenbach
Jacques Offenbach was a Prussian-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s–1870s and his uncompleted opera The Tales of Hoffmann. He was a powerful influence on later composers of the operetta genre, particularly Johann Strauss, Jr....
. The French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
libretto was by the composer with Charles-Louis-Étienne Nuitter
Charles-Louis-Etienne Nuitter
Charles-Louis-Étienne Nuitter was a French librettist, translator, writer and librarian born in Paris, France on 24 April 1828. He died there on 23 February 1899 after suffering a stroke a few days before.-Librettist and translator:...
and Paul Ferrier.
The sub-title was La femme à deux maris; the working title during the preparation of the libretto and composition had been Frimouskino, which Offenbach had drafted in the late 1860s. Composed in Nice
Nice
Nice is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of more than 955,000 on an area of...
, Offenbach asked Nuitter and Ferrier to help him with the song lyrics as his regular collaborators, Meilhac and Halévy had distanced themselves in order to concentrate on other projects, including work with Lecocq.
Premiered at the Théâtre des Bouffes Parisiens
Théâtre des Bouffes Parisiens
The Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens is a Parisian theatre which was founded in 1855 by the composer Jacques Offenbach for the performance of opéra bouffe and operetta. The current theatre is located in the 2nd arrondissement at 4 rue Monsigny with an entrance at the back at 65 Passage Choiseul. In...
, the piece was taken off after less than two months, and Le timbale d’argent returned to the Bouffes. Reflecting on his many previous successes, when the opera failed to run more than 50 performances, Offenbach wrote to Ludovic Halévy
Ludovic Halévy
Ludovic Halévy was a French author and playwright. He was half Jewish : his Jewish father had converted to Christianity prior to his birth, to marry his mother, née Alexandrine Lebas.-Biography:Ludovic Halévy was born in Paris...
that ‘Offenbach’ was not to be found on the billboards for the 1878 Exhibition
Exposition Universelle (1878)
The third Paris World's Fair, called an Exposition Universelle in French, was held from 1 May through to 10 November 1878. It celebrated the recovery of France after the 1870 Franco-Prussian War.-Construction:...
.
The work is one of several by Offenbach with Spanish connections: Pépito, La Duchesse d’Albe and Les bavards
Les bavards
Les bavards is an opéra bouffe, or operetta, by Jacques Offenbach, with a French libretto by Charles-Louis-Étienne Nuitter based on a story originally by Cervantes, ‘Los dos habladores’.-Performance history:...
. The malagueña was inserted as an additional song for Fiorella in the Christmas Day revival of Les brigands
Les brigands
Les brigands is an opéra bouffe, or operetta, by Jacques Offenbach to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy....
at the Théâtre de la Gaîté
Théâtre de la Gaîté (rue Papin)
In 1862 during Haussmann's modernization of Paris the Théâtre de la Gaîté of the boulevard du Temple was relocated to the rue Papin across from the Square des Arts et Métiers....
in 1878.
Two lawsuits concerning the subject of the opera were brought - against Offenbach and after his death against the theatre manager Charles Comte - alleging that the subject matter had been plagiarized from a stage work by Oswald and Lévy.
Roles
| Role | Voice type Voice type A voice type is a particular kind of human singing voice perceived as having certain identifying qualities or characteristics. Voice classification is the process by which human voices are evaluated and are thereby designated into voice types... |
Premiere cast, 29 November 1873 (Conductor Conducting Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble... : Thibault) |
|---|---|---|
| Manoëla | 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... |
Humberta |
| Alvarès | soprano | Blanche Peschard |
| Léona | 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... |
Caroline Girard Caroline Girard Caroline Girard was a French operatic soprano. She was the mother of Juliette Simon-Girard.-Career:Girard was a principal singer at the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris from 1853, creating many roles including Margot in Le diable à quatre by Solié/Adam in 1853, Columbine in Le tableau parlant by Grétry in... |
| Frimouskino | soprano | Paola Marié |
| Péronilla | 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... |
Daubray Daubray (actor) Michel René Thibaut, known by his stage-name Daubray, born Nantes 7 May 1837, died Paris 10 September 1892 was a leading French actor and singer in operetta, active mainly in Paris but who also appeared around Europe.-Life and career:... |
| Don Guardona | 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... |
Alfred Jolly |
| Ripardos | baritone | Troy |
| Don Henrique de Rio Grande | Sassard | |
| Brid’oison | bass | Scipion |
| Le Corrégidor | bass | |
| 1st Judge | tenor | Jannin |
| 2nd Judge | tenor | Chambéry |
| Chorus: Guests, valets, servants, alguazils, women, soldiers | ||
Act 1
The gardens of PéronillaThe daughter of Péronilla, the leading chocolate maker in Madrid, the young and beautiful Manoëla, is to be married to old Don Guardona, to the displeasure of Ripardos, a soldier, and Frimouskino, a notary’s clerk. Léona, the sister of Péronilla, has arranged the wedding in order to thwart the attentions of the handsome music master Alvarès. He, having been dismissed by Léona, returns to Péronilla’s house. The marriage contract has already been signed, but Ripardos and Frimouskino in the dim light of the chapel manage to get Alvarès, not Don Guardona into religious union with Manoëla – thus giving her two husbands.
Act 2
In the palace of the Marquis Don Henrique de Rio GrandeA group of servants sing of the futility of thwarting true young love. The newly-weds – or rather Manoëla and Alvarès – sit down to dine, joined next by all the wedding guests, including the other husband. Alvarès sings a malagueña. It is agreed to leave explanations to the next day, especially as Péronilla is ashamed of the business and cannot decide between the two new sons-in-law. All retire to bed. Manoëla and Alvarès, with the complicity of Ripardos and Frimouskino (and Péronilla turning a blind eye) are allowed to flee the house but are caught by the alguazils and Manoëla is forced to reside in a convent until the matter has been properly settled.