Earth and Space News: Met Opera Opened 19th First Season Opera Les Huguenots March 19, 1884

Summary: Les Huguenots opened Wednesday, March 19, 1884, as the 19th premiere in the Metropolitan Opera's first season, 1883-1884.

Polish coloratura soprano Marcella Sembrich costumed as Marguerite de Valois, the Met Opera role she originated in the opera house's first season premiere of Meyerbeer's Les Huguenots: The Sembrich @TheSembrich, via Facebook March 8, 2015

Met Opera premiered Les Huguenots Wednesday, March 19, 1884, as the 19th opera in the opera house's first season, 1883-1884.

The five-act grand opéra (grand opera) by German Jewish opera composer Giacomo Meyerbeer (Sept. 5, 1791-May 2, 1864) received three performances, sung in Italian, during Met Opera's first season. The Metropolitan Opera House was the venue for Les Huguenot's Wednesday premiere and also for the second performance, Wednesday, March 26. The inaugural season's closing performance of Les Huguenots took place Monday, April 14, at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Auguste Vianesi (Nov. 2, 1837-Nov. 4, 1908) conducted all three performances of Les Huguenots in the first season. The French-naturalized, northwestern Italy-born conductor had made his Met Opera debut Monday, Oct. 22, 1883, in the first season's first premiere, Faust by French composer Charles-François Gounod (June 17, 1818-Oct. 18, 1893).

Marcella Sembrich (Feb. 15, 1858-Jan. 11, 1935) appeared in all three performances as Marguerite de Valois, whose marriage to Henry of Navarre is presented as preceding the massacre of French Protestants in the opera's fifth and last act. The Polish coloratura soprano had made her Met Opera debut Wednesday, Oct. 24, 1883, in the title role in Met Opera's premiere of Lucia di Lammermoor by Italian opera composer Gaetano Donizetti (Nov. 29, 1797-April 8, 1848).

Italo Campanini (June 30, 1845-Nov. 14, 1896) sang Raoul de Nangis in all three performances. The Italian operatic tenor had made his Met Opera debut Monday, Oct. 22, 1883, in the title role in the opening season's opening premiere, Faust by French composer Charles-François Gounod (June 17, 1818-Oct. 18, 1893).

Christine Nilsson (Aug. 20, 1843-Nov. 20, 1921) sang in all three performances as Valentine, a Catholic who loves Raoul, a Protestant. The Swedish operatic soprano had made her Met Opera debut Monday, Oct. 22, 1883, as Marguerite in the first season's first premiere, Gounod's Faust.

Giuseppe Del Puente (Jan. 30, 1841-May 25, 1900) appeared in all three performances as the Count de Nevers, who becomes Valentine's husband. Giuseppe Del Puente had made his Met Opera debut Monday, Oct. 22, 1883, as Valentin in the opening season's inaugural premiere, Gounod's Faust.

Sofia Scalchi (Nov. 29, 1850-Aug. 22, 1922) sang the trouser role of royal page Urbain in all three performances. The Italian operatic contralto-mezzosoprano had made her Met Opera debut Monday, Oct. 22, 1883, in the trouser role of Siebel in the first season's inaugural premiere, Gounod's Faust.

Giuseppe Kaschmann (July 14, 1850-Feb. 11, 1925) appeared in all three performances as the Count de Saint Bris, Valentine's father. The Croatian-Austrian operatic baritone, whose birth name was Josip Kašman, had made his Met Opera debut Wednesday, Oct. 24, 1883, as Enrico in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, the first season's second premiere.

Giovanni Mirabella appeared as Claudius, Hamlet's fratricidal uncle, in all three performances. The Florentine bass had made his Met Opera debut Monday, Oct. 29, 1883, as Giorgio in I Puritani by 19th century Italian opera composer Vincenzo Bellini (Nov. 3, 1801-Sept. 23, 1835).

The Metropolitan Opera Archives Database (MetOpera Database) lists Miss Alberti (no first name given) as the singer of the soprano role of a Lady of Honor in all three performances. Miss Alberti's Met Opera career apparently was confined to only one opera in the opera house's first season. Miss Alberti's appearance in the premiere marked her Met Opera debut. Her appearance in the closing performance was noted as her last Met Opera performance.

For the opera's premiere and second performance, the MetOpera Database designates the singers of the roles of Tavannes, Méru and Bois-Rosé as "unknown." The third performance's roster identifies Amadeo Grazzi as Tavannes, Baldassare Corsini as Méru and Nicola Stagi as Bois-Rosé. Amadeo Grazzi made his Met Opera debut Wednesday, Oct. 24, 1883, as Normanno in the first season's second premiere, Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor. Baldassare Corsini made his Met Opera debut Wednesday, Oct. 31, 1883, as Laërte in the first season's fifth premiere, Giacomo Meyerbeer's Mignon. Nicola Stagi had made his Met Opera debut Monday, Nov. 19, 1883, as Raimbaut in the opening season's 10th premiere, Meyerbeer's Robert le Diable.

The MetOpera Database entry for the opera's premiere identifies Mr. Corani (Henry De Courtney Corani, ca. 1849-May 1905) and Mr. Abbiati as the production's directors and D. Ascoli and Henry Dazian as the production's set designers. No production information is included for the second and closing performances.

The MetOpera Database notes that a complete performance of Les Huguenots had been scheduled for Monday, April 7. The last-minute illness of Christine Nilsson, however, restricted the performance to the first act, with singing by Italo Campanini, as Raoul de Nangis; Giuseppe Del Puente, as the Count de Nevers; Sofia Scalchi, as Urbain; and Giovanni Mirabella as Marcel. The program then switched to a performance of Acts II and III of Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor.

Les Huguenots numbered as the third of three Meyerbeer operas staged in Met Opera's first season. Robert Le Diable opened Monday, Nov. 19, 1883, as the first season's 10th premiere and as the first of the season's three Meyerbeer operas. Le Prophète occurred as the second of the season's three Meyerbeer operas.

Les Huguenots was staged as the 19th opera in the lineup of 20 operas in the Metropolitan Opera's opening season, 1883-1884. Roméo et Juliette, by French composer Charles-François Gounod (June 17, 1818-Oct. 18, 1893), succeeded Les Huguenots as the 20th and last premiere in Met Opera's opening season.

The takeaways for Met Opera's premiere of Les Huguenots are that the grand opéra (grand opera) was staged as the 19th opera in Met Opera's first season, 1883-1884, and that Polish coloratura soprano Marcella Sembrich and Swedish operatic soprano Christine Nilsson originated the opera house's roles of Marguerite de Valois and of Valentine, respectively.

Swedish operatic soprano Christine (Christina) Nilsson originated the role of Valentine at the Metropolitan Opera in the opera house's first season premiere of Meyerbeer's Les Huguenots; portrait of Christine Nilsson in The Marie Burroughs Art Portfolio of Stage Celebrities (1894): Public Domain, via Internet Archive

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

"Debut: Baldassare Corsini." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID:1050 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Mignon {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 10/31/1883.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=1050

"Debut: Giovanni Mirabella, Ida Corani." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 1040 Metropolitan Opera Premiere I Puritani {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 10/29/1883.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=1040

"Debut: Miss Alberti." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID:2250 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Les Huguenots {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 03/19/1884.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=2250

"Debut: Nicola Stagi." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 1180 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Robert le Diable {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/19/1883.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=1180

"Debuts: Italo Campanini, Christine Nilsson, Franco Novara, Giuseppe Del Puente, Sofia Scalchi, Louise Lablache, Ludovico Contini, Auguste Vianesi, Mr. Corani, Mr. Abbiati, Charles Fox, Jr., William Schaeffer, Gaspar Maeder, Mr. Thompson, D. Ascoli, Henry Dazian." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID:1000 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Faust {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 10/22/1883. Metropolitan Opera Premiere Opening Night {1}.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=1000

"Debuts: Marcella Sembrich, Giuseppe Kaschmann, Achille Augier, Amadeo Grazzi, Imogene Forti, Vincenzo Fornaris." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 1010 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Lucia di Lammermoor {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 10/24/1883.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=1010

Letellier, Robert Ignatius, trans., ed., annot. The Diaries of Giacomo Meyerbeer: Volume 4 1857-1864 The Last Years. Madison [NJ]: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2004.

The Marie Burroughs Art Portfolio of Stage Celebrities. A Collection of Photographs of the Leaders of Dramatic and Lyric Art. Chicago : A.N. Marquis & Company, 1894.
Available via HathiTrust @ https://hdl.handle.net/2027/njp.32101073370700
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/marieburroughsar00chic/

Marriner, Derdriu. "Met Opera's First Season Opened 17th Opera Le Prophète Feb. 12, 1884." Earth and Space News. Monday, Jan. 11, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/01/met-operas-first-season-opened-17th.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Met Opera Opened 10th First Season Opera Robert le Diable Nov. 19, 1883." Earth and Space News. Monday, Nov. 23, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/11/met-opera-opened-10th-first-season.html

Metropolitan Opera Premiere: Les Huguenots.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 2250 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Les Huguenots {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 03/19/1884.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=2250

Owen, H. (Henry) Goddard. A Recollection of Marcella Sembrich. First edition. Bolton Landing NY: Marcella Sembrich Memorial Association: Jan. 1, 1950.

Owen, H. (Henry) Goddard; and Philip Lieson Miller. A Recollection of Marcella Sembrich, With a New Introduction. Da Capo Press Series in Architecture and Decorative Art. New York NY: Da Capo Press, April 21, 1982.

Rous, Samuel Holland. The Victrola Book of the Opera: Stories of One Hundred and Twenty Operas With Seven-Hundred Illustrations and Descriptions of Twelve-Hundred Victor Opera Records. Fourth revised edition. Camden NJ: Victor Talking Machine Company, 1917.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/victrolabookofop00vict

The Sembrich @TheSembrich. "We celebrate the achievements of Marcella Sembrich, opera star, renowned teacher and Polish patriot, on International Women's Day! http://www.internationalwomensday.com/." Facebook. March 8, 2015.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/TheSembrich/photos/a.481908958541300/805453859520140/LL

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Monday, January 25, 2021

Met Opera Opened 19th First Season Opera Les Huguenots March 19, 1884

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