Camille du Locle

Portrait by Gustave Boulanger, Rome (1854)
Camille du Locle (right; 1893)
Camille du Locle (1895)

Camille du Locle (16 July 1832 – 9 October 1903) was a French theatre manager and a librettist. He was born in Orange, France. From 1862 he served as assistant to his father-in-law, Émile Perrin, at the Paris Opéra. From 1870, he was co-director at the Opéra-Comique with Adolphe de Leuven, and sole director from 1874 to 1876. He is best remembered for mounting the original production of Bizet's Carmen in 1875.[1]

Du Locle was responsible for completing the libretto of Giuseppe Verdi's Don Carlos (1867) after the death of Joseph Méry.[1] He also played a key role in the genesis of Aida in 1869–70.[2]

According to Charles Pigot, Du Locle inspired the subject, words and music of Bizet's Djamileh (1872).[3] He was a pall-bearer at Bizet's funeral in 1875 and made a speech at his interment at Père Lachaise.[4]

In 1876, a financial dispute arose with Verdi,[5] and Du Locle moved to Capri, where he constructed and lived in the Villa Certosella, now a hotel.[6] In Capri he was known for his reclusiveness, short temper, and sharp tongue. He often went around in a French suit, causing him to be regarded as a bit eccentric. One day he started attracting attention by wearing a suit and cape made of rough, uncoloured wool, a fabric usually only worn by fishermen. Soon many of the Germans and English on the island adopted attire made of similar material, which stimulated a local industry of hand-woven wool cloth which persisted until machine-made fabrics took over several decades later.[7]

His friendship with Ernest Reyer led to him providing libretti for Sigurd (1884) and Salammbô (1890).[1]

Du Locle died in Capri in 1903.[1]

  1. ^ a b c d Huebner 1992.
  2. ^ Budden 1985, p. 105.
  3. ^ Dean 1978, pp. 94–95.
  4. ^ Dean 1978, p. 128.
  5. ^ Budden 1985, pp. 107, 119–120.
  6. ^ "Capri's famous visitors", Capri On Line. Archive copy (22 April 2019).
  7. ^ Steegmuller 1982, p. 260.