Met Opera Staged Iphigénie en Tauride's U.S. Premiere Nov. 25, 1916

Summary: Met Opera staged Iphigénie en Tauride's U.S. Premiere Nov. 25, 1916, with a German libretto by German composers Richard Strauss and Peter Cornelius.

Iphigenia in Tauris, ca. 1893 oil on canvas by Russian painter Valentin Alexandrovich Serov (Russian: Валенти́н Алекса́ндрович Серо́в; Jan. 19, 1865-Dec. 5, 1911); Tatarstan State Museum of Fine Arts, Kazan, (Eastern Europe) western Russia: Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Met Opera staged Iphigénie en Tauride's U.S. premiere Nov. 25, 1916, with a German libretto that was translated by German composers Richard Strauss and Peter Cornelius from the opera's original French libretto.

The Metropolitan Opera Archives Database (MetOpera Database) noted that the Saturday, Nov. 25, 1916, U.S. premiere was performed with the German title of Iphigenie auf Tauris ("Iphigenia in Tauris"). The German libretto for the Greek mythology-themed opera by German classical composer Christoph von Gluck (July 2, 1714-Nov. 15, 1787) was credited to German composer Richard Strauss (June 11, 1864-Sep. 8, 1949), who "probably" based his translation upon "an earlier German version" by German composer and poet Carl August Peter Cornelius (Dec. 24, 1824-Oct. 26, 1874).

In its U.S. premiere season, Iphigénie en Tauride received five performances. The Metropolitan Opera House was the venue for all five performances (Saturday, Nov. 25, premiere; Monday, Dec. 11; Friday, Dec. 29; Valentine's Day, Wednesday, Feb. 14, 1917; closing night, Thursday, April 19).

Artur Bodanzky (Dec. 16, 1877-Nov. 23, 1939) conducted all five performances in the 1916-1917 season. The Austrian-American Jewish conductor had made his Met Opera debut Thursday, Nov. 18, 1915, in the opera house's 85th performance of Götterdämmerung by German Romantic era composer-librettist Richard Wagner (May 22, 1813-Feb. 13, 1883).

Jan Heythekker directed the United States premiere of Iphigénie en Tauride. The Dutch stage manager's Met Opera debut Thursday, Nov. 18, 1915, in the opera house's 85th performance of Wagner's Götterdämmerung coincided with Maestro Bodanzky's Met Opera debut.

The production team comprised American Beaux Arts architect, scenic designer and muralist J. (James) Monroe Hewlett (Aug. 1, 1868-Oct. 18, 1941) as set and costume designer and Australian-born American artist Charles Basing (July 23, 1864-March 3, 1933) and A.T. (Arthur Thomas) Hewlett (Dec. 9, 1870-Nov. 11, 1951) as set designers. The three designers made their Met Opera debut in the U.S. premiere of Iphigénie en Tauride.

Melanie Kurt (Jan. 8, 1880-March 11, 1941) sang the title role of a priestess of Diane (Diana) in Scythian Tauris (modern-day Crimean peninsula) in all five performances. The Austrian operatic soprano had made her Met Opera debut Monday, Feb. 1, 1915, as Isolde in the opera house's 128th performance of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde. Her appearance in the 1916-1917 season's fifth, closing performance of Iphigénie en Tauride marked her last Met Opera performance.

Hermann Weil (Sep. 25, 1876-July 6, 1949) appeared in all five performances as Orestes, Iphigénie's long-lost brother, captured as an unknown shipwreckee in Tauris. The German operatic baritone had made his Met Opera debut Friday, Nov. 17, 1911, as Kurwenal in the opera house's 110th performance of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde. His appearance in the 1916-1917 season's fifth, closing performance of Iphigénie en Tauride marked his last Met Opera performance.

Johannes Sembach (born Johannes Semfke; March 9, 1881-June 20, 1944) sang Pylade, captured with his lifelong friend, Orestes, in all five performances. The German operatic tenor had made his Met Opera debut Thursday, Nov. 26, 1914, in the title role in the opera house's 74th performance of Wagner's Parsifal.

Carl Braun (June 2, 1886-April 24, 1960) sang Thoas, King of Scythia, in all five performances. The German operatic bass had made his Met Opera debut Saturday, Feb. 8, 1913, as King Marke in the opera house's 118th performance of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde.

Marie Rappold (Aug. 17, 1872-May 12, 1957) appeared in the premiere performance as goddess Diane (Diana), whose dea ex machina (Latin: "goddess out of the machine") appearance in the last (fourth) act assures a happy, safe resolution for Iphigénie, Orestes and Pylade. The German-born American operatic soprano had made her Met Opera debut Wednesday, Nov. 22, 1905, as Sulamith in the opera house's 37th performance of Die Königin von Saba by Hungarian-Jewish, then Viennese composer Karl Goldmark (born Károly Goldmark; May 18, 1830-Jan. 2, 1915).

Marie Rappold shared the role with Marie Sundelius (born Marie Sundborg; Feb. 4, 1882-June 27, 1958), who sang Diane in the 1916-1917 season's last four performances. Iphigénie en Tauride's U.S. premiere had marked the Swedish-American classical soprano's Met Opera debut, with her appearance as the First Priestess in the Temple of Diane at Tauris. She sang both roles, as Iphigénie and as First Priestess, in the last four performances.

Alice Eversman (Sep. 4, 1885-Feb. 1, 1974) sang the Second Priestess in all five performances. The American operatic soprano had made her Met Opera debut Monday, Nov. 20, 1916, as the Second Lady in the opera house's 59th performance of Die Zauberflöte by Classical Era composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Jan. 27, 1756-Dec. 5, 1791). Her appearance in the 1916-1917 season's fifth, closing performance of Iphigénie en Tauride marked her last Met Opera performance.

Robert Leonhardt (Dec. 27, 1872-Feb. 2, 1923) sang the Temple Attendant in all five performances. The American operatic baritone had made his Met Opera debut Friday, Dec. 26, 1913, as Peter in the opera house's 75th performance of Hänsel und Gretel by German composer Engelbert Humperdinck (Sep. 1, 1854-Sep. 27, 1921).

Lenora Sparkes (1878/1879-June 8, 1969) sang as a Greek Woman in all five performances. The British-American mezzo-soprano had made her Met Opera debut Monday, Nov. 16, 1908, as the Priestess in the opera house's 126th performance of Aida by Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901).

MetOpera Database credits Rosina Galli (June 19, 1892-April 30, 1940), Giuseppe Bonfiglio (1884-1947) and corps de ballet with the incidental dance in Act I and Rosina Galli with the dance of the priestess in Act II. Rosina Galli had made her Met Opera debut Thursday, Nov. 19, 1914, in the opera house's 207th performance of Carmen by French Romantic Era composer Georges Bizet (Oct. 25, 1838-June 3, 1875). Giuseppe Bonfiglio had made his Met Opera debut Thursday, March 12, 1908, in the opera house's 24th performance of Mignon by French composer Ambroise Thomas (Aug. 5, 1811-Feb. 12, 1896).

After Iphigénie en Tauride's U.S. premiere season, 1916-1917, the opera was not staged for 90 seasons (1917-1918 through 2006-2007). Its Met Opera performance history was restricted to the premiere season's five performances until a new production, directed by American opera and theater director Stephen Wadsworth (born April 3, 1953, as Stephen Wadsworth Zinsser), was staged in the 2007-2008 season. The opera's performance history has gained 14 performances, with eight added in the 2007-2008 season and six added in the 2010-2011 season's revival.

The takeaways for Met Opera's staging Iphigénie en Tauride's U.S. premiere Nov. 25, 1916, are that the Greek mythology-themed opera by 18th-century German classical composer Christoph von Gluck received five performances in its premiere season, 1916-1917; that Met Opera replaced the opera's original French libretto with a German libretto by German composers Richard Strauss and Peter Cornelius; that 90 seasons of non-performance followed Iphigénie en Tauride's U.S. premiere; and that the opera appeared as a new production in the 2007-2008 season, with a revival in the 2010-2011 season.

Iphigénie en Tauride's U.S. premiere was staged in German, as Iphigenie auf Tauris, with the libretto by German composers Richard Strauss and Peter Cornelius; 1918 portrait of Richard Strauss by Ashkenazi Jewish-German painter and printmaker Max Liebermann (July 20, 1847-Feb. 8, 1935), Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery), Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (Berlin State Museums): Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

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

Image credits:

Iphigenia in Tauris, ca. 1893 oil on canvas by Russian painter Valentin Alexandrovich Serov (Russian: Валенти́н Алекса́ндрович Серо́в; Jan. 19, 1865-Dec. 5, 1911); Tatarstan State Museum of Fine Arts, Kazan, (Eastern Europe) western Russia: Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Iphigenia_in_Tauris_by_V.Serov_(1893).JPG

Iphigénie en Tauride's U.S. premiere was staged in German, as Iphigenie auf Tauris, with the libretto by German composers Richard Strauss and Peter Cornelius; 1918 portrait of Richard Strauss by Ashkenazi Jewish-German painter and printmaker Max Liebermann (July 20, 1847-Feb. 8, 1935), Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery), Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (Berlin State Museums): Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Max_Liebermann_Bildnis_Richard_Strauss.jpg

For further information:

Arakelyan, Ashot. "Hermann Weil (Baritone) (Mühlburg 1876-New York 1949)." Forgotten Opera Singers. March 24, 2014.
Available @ http://forgottenoperasingers.blogspot.com/2014/03/hermann-weil-baritone-muhlburg-1876-new.html

Arakelyan, Ashot. "Robert Leonhardt (Baritone) (Linz, Austria 1877-New York City February 2, 1923)." Forgotten Opera Singers. Oct. 19, 2016.
Available @ http://forgottenoperasingers.blogspot.com/2016/10/robert-leonhardt-baritone-linz-austria.html

"Debut: Giuseppe Bonfiglio." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 41290 Mignon {24} Metropolitan Opera House: 03/12/1908.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=41290

"Debut: Hermann Weil." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 52040 Tristan und Isolde {110} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/17/1911.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=52040

"Debut: Johannes Sembach." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 58110 Parsifal {74} Matinee ed. Metropolitan Opera House: 11/26/1914.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=58110

"Debut: Marie Rappold, Jacques Goldberg." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 36010 New production Die Königin von Saba {37} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/22/1905.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=36010

"Debut: Melanie Kurt." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 58930 Tristan und Isolde {128} Metropolitan Opera House: 02/1/1915.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=58930

"Debut: Robert Leonhardt." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 55450 Hänsel und Gretel {75} Matinee ed. Metropolitan Opera House: 12/26/1913.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=55450

"Debuts: Alice Eversman, Odette Le Fontenay." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 64080 Die Zauberflöte {59} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/20/1916.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=64080

"Debuts: Carl Braun, Jacques Urlus." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 54610 Tristan und Isolde {118} Matinee ed. Metropolitan Opera House: 02/08/1913.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=54610

"Debuts: Emmy Destinn, Giulio Rossi, Angelo Badà, Lenora Sparkes, Gina Torriani, Arturo Toscanini, Mario Sala, Angels [sic: Angelo Parravicini]." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 42010 New Production Aida {126} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/16/1908. Opening Night {24} Giulio Gatti-Casazza, General Manager.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=42010

"Debuts: J. Monroe Hewlett, Charles Basing, A.T. Hewlett, Marie Sundelius." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 64130 United States Premiere Iphigénie en Tauride {1} Matinee ed. Metropolitan Opera House: 11/25/1916.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=64130

"Debuts: Julia Heinrich, Artur Bodanzky, Jan Heythekker." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 61030 Götterdämmerung {85} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/18/1915.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=61030

"Debuts: Rosina Galli, Désiré Defrère." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 58030 New production Carmen {207} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/19/1914.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=58030

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Available @ https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/140019679/arthur-t.-hewlett

Marriner, Derdriu. "Iphigénie en Tauride Was To Be Saturday Matinee Broadcast Feb. 26, 2022." Earth and Space News. Monday, Aug. 8 2022.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2022/08/iphigenie-en-tauride-was-to-be-saturday.html

RR. "James Monroe “Monroe” Hewlett." Find A Grave > Find a Grave Memorial 61123782. Nov. 4, 2010.
Available @ https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/61123782/james-monroe-hewlett

"United States Premiere: Iphigénie en Tauride." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 64130 United States Premiere Iphigénie en Tauride {1} Matinee ed. Metropolitan Opera House: 11/25/1916.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=64130