Monsieur Beaucaire (opera)

Monsieur Beaucaire: Act II sword fight

Monsieur Beaucaire is a romantic opera in three acts, composed by André Messager.[1] The libretto, based on the 1900 novel by Booth Tarkington,[2] is by Frederick Lonsdale, with lyrics by Adrian Ross. The piece premiered at the Prince of Wales Theatre in Birmingham, England, on 7 April 1919, before opening at the Prince's Theatre in London under the management of Frank Curzon on 19 April 1919 and transferring to the Palace Theatre on 29 July 1919, for a successful run.

Monsieur Beaucaire was also produced on Broadway in 1919–1920 and enjoyed many revivals and international tours. The French premiere was delayed by difficulties in finding a suitable theatre; it opened at the Théâtre Marigny, Paris on 21 November 1925, with a French adaptation by André Rivoire and Pierre Veber,[1] and starring Marcelle Denya, Renée Camia, and André Baugé. In 1955, it entered the repertoire of the Opéra-Comique in Paris, with Jacques Jansen and Denise Duval.[3]

The composer stated that he began work on Monsieur Beaucaire following a meeting with impresario Gilbert Miller in 1916. Messager's son said that most of it was composed during the summer of 1917 in Étretat.[1] Messager's career in London, which included a six-year stint as music director at Covent Garden, concluded with Monsieur Beaucaire, his second and last opera in English. As well as considerable use of the waltz-time, there are several neo-classical touches in the score.[1] Some of the most popular songs are "I do not know", "Red Rose", and "Philomel".

  1. ^ a b c d Wagstaff J. "Monsieur Beaucaire", The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. Macmillan, London and New York, 1997.
  2. ^ Image of, and information about, the book
  3. ^ Blay P. Du demi-caractère au chant nouveau – André Messager et l’Opéra-Comique. In: André Messager. Ed. Duteutre B. Klincksieck, 2003.