Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens

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Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens in 2010

The Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens (French pronunciation: ​[te.atʁ de buf paʁizjɛ̃]) 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 19th century the theatre was often referred to as the Salle Choiseul. With the decline in popularity of operetta after 1870, the theatre expanded its repertory to include comedies.[1][2][3][4][5]

History

Salle Lacaze

The public at the Bouffes-Parisiens (ca. 1860)

In February 1855 Offenbach successfully requested a license from the Parisian authorities for the performance of what he described as a "new and original" genre of musical theatre. He justified his proposed endeavour by saying that these works would have mass appeal and would provide opportunities for young French composers.[3]

The company gave its first performances during the summer of 1855 at the Salle Lacaze. This theatre was unusually small with a capacity of only 300 spectators,[6] but was located on the Carré Marigny, near the crowds attending the Exposition Universelle. The inaugural performance was on 5 July with Offenbach conducting four of his own works: a prologue called Entrez, messieurs, mesdames, a one-act pièce d'occasion written by Joseph Méry and "Jules Servières" (a nom de plume of Ludovic Halévy, who worked as a government official and needed to protect his reputation); Une nuit blanche, a one-act opéra-comique on a pastoral theme; Arlequin barbier, a pantomime utilizing themes from Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia arranged by "Alfred Lange" (Offenbach); and Les deux aveugles, a one-act bouffonerie musicale about two swindling "blind" Parisian beggars. The latter was almost cut, since the invited audience who attended the dress rehearsal failed to laugh, but Offenbach decided to retain it, and it was the hit of the opening night. This little piece soon acquired an international reputation (due to visitors from the Exposition), and Offenbach's admirers soon included Tolstoy and Thackeray. Further performances in the summer of 1855 were primarily of satirical sketches which only included a few musical numbers. The season, however, was so successful that Offenbach was able to resign his position as conductor of the Théâtre Français.[1][2][7]

Salle Choiseul

The Salle Choiseul during a performance of Offenbach's Un mari à la porte (1859)
Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens (ca. 1867)

In October Offenbach submitted another petition to the authorities, this time to merge his company with the Théâtre des Jeunes Élèves de Monsieur Comte (Théâtre Comte). This company's theatre, which was not much larger than the Salle Lacaze, was demolished, and the larger Salle Choiseul with a capacity of about 900 was constructed. The new theatre was not only larger, but warmer, more luxurious and more comfortable than the Salle Lacaze. The orchestra was enlarged from sixteen players to thirty.[8] Offenbach's new license permitted performances of one-act comedies, with or without music, but with fewer than five characters. It also specifically excluded sketches and required the performance of at least two works by composers other than Offenbach. The first performance of the merged company was on 29 December 1855 at the Salle Choiseul and included the premiere of Offenbach's Ba-ta-clan, a one-act chinoiserie musicale with a libretto by Halévy. From this time performances were primarily given at the Salle Choiseul during the winter theatre season. The company performed at the Salle Lacaze during the 1856, 1857 and 1859 summer seasons,[9][10] however, in March 1861 legislation was enacted which prevented the company from using both theatres, and appearances at the Salle Lacaze were discontinued.[11] In spite of the restrictions of the license, Offenbach began including longer, more substantial works which violated its terms. For instance, his two-act Orphée aux enfers with a cast of 16 received its first performance at the Salle Choiseul on 21 October 1858. Even after Offenbach resigned as the director in January 1862, the company continued at the Salle Choiseul, performing light operas by other composers as well as Offenbach.[1][2][3][12]

Upon the departure of Offenbach, the new director tore down the existing hall to erect a larger one with a capacity of 1100 spectators.[1]

Legacy

While the Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens is indelibly linked to Offenbach, it has also been the venue for a number of other important works. In addition to Offenbach's own operettas, the theatre has seen the premieres of musical works by Hervé, Emmanuel Chabrier and Claude Terrasse and playwrights such as Robert de Flers, Albert Willemetz, Sacha Guitry and Henri Bernstein.

From 1986 to 2007, the Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens was under the directorship of Jean-Claude Brialy, who died of cancer in May 2007.

List of premieres at this theatre

Date Composer Work Ref
29 December 1855 Jacques Offenbach Ba-ta-clan [3]
8 August 1856 Léo Delibes Dieux vielles gardes [3]
8 April 1857 Charles Lecocq Le docteur miracle [3]
9 April 1857 Georges Bizet Le docteur miracle [3]
21 October 1858 Jacques Offenbach Orphée aux enfers [3]
8 June 1859 Léo Delibes L'omelette à la Follembuche [3]
19 November 1859 Jacques Offenbach Geneviève de Brabant [3]
10 February 1860 Jacques Offenbach Le carnaval des revues [3]
17 November 1866 Hervé Les chevaliers de la table ronde [13][14]
11 January 1867 Delphine Ugalde Halte au moulin [3]
16 January 1869 Charles Lecocq Gandolfo [3][15]
19 November 1871 Charles Lecocq Le barbier de Trouville [3][16]
3 October 1877 Gaston Serpette La petite muette [17]
28 November 1877 Emmanuel Chabrier L'étoile [3][18]
13 November 1879 Edmond Audran Les noces d'Olivette [19]
16 March 1880 Louis Varney Les mousquetaires au couvent [20]
29 December 1880 Edmond Audran La mascotte [21]
11 November 1882 Edmond Audran Gillette de Narbonne [22]
19 April 1884 Joseph O'Kelly La Barbière improvisée [23]
20 March 1886 Victor Roger Joséphine vendue par ses sœurs [3][24]
8 October 1887 Raoul Pugno Le sosie [3][25]
19 April 1888 Raoul Pugno Le valet de cœur [3][25]
15 October 1888 Victor Roger Oscarine [3][26]
1 February 1889 Raoul Pugno Le retour d'Ulysse [3][25]
18 December 1889 André Messager Le mari de la reine [3][27]
22 April 1892 Paul Vidal Eros [3][28]
29 March 1893 Edmond Audran Madame Suzette [29]
3 November 1893 Émile Pessard Mam'zelle Carabin [3][30]
17 October 1894 Edmond Audran L'enlèvement de la Toledad [31]
6 May 1895 Gaston Serpette La dot de Brigitte [32]
28 February 1896 Charles Lecocq Ninette [3][33]
16 November 1897 André Messager Les p'tites Michu [34]
10 December 1898 André Messager Véronique [35][36]
7 March 1901 Claude Terrasse Les travaux d'Hercule [37][38]
12 November 1918 Henri Christiné Phi-Phi [39]
10 November 1921 Henri Christiné Dédé [40]
31 March 1923 Maurice Yvain Là-Haut [41]
22 December 1923 Maurice Yvain La dame en décolleté [42]
7 March 1924 Raoul Moretti En chemyse [43]
17 September 1924 Raoul Moretti Troublez-moi [44]
21 April 1925 Henri Christiné P.L.M. [45]
3 December 1925 Raoul Moretti Trois jeunes filles … nues [46]
22 December 1926 Henri Christiné J'aime [47]
9 May 1929 Joseph Szulc Flossie [48]
12 December 1930 Arthur Honegger Les aventures du roi Pausole [49]
19 September 1934 Moisés Simons Toi c'est moi [50]

List of directors

The Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens was founded as a private entrepreneurship.[51]

Date Director(s)
5 July 1855  Jacques Offenbach, Charles Comte[52]
3 February 1862  Alphonse Varney[52]
27 September 1864 Eugène Hanappier, Armand Lapoint[52]
17 September 1866  François Varcollier[52]
8 July 1867  Julien-Joseph-Henry Dupontavisse, Auguste Lefranc[52]
August 1868  Jules Noriac, Charles Comte[52]
1870  [Closed during the Franco-Prussian War][53]
16 April 1871  Jules Noriac, Charles Comte[52]
1873  Charles Comte[52]
1877  Louis Cantin[52][54]
15 October 1885  Delphine Ugalde[55]
1 September 1888  Chizzola[56]
1889  Oscar de Lagoanère[57]
1890  Félix Larcher[58]
1892  Charles Masset[59]
1893  Eugène Larcher[60]
1895  Georges Grisier[61]
1897  Michel-Amable Coudert[62]
1899  Coudert and Berny[63]
1900  Vildreux and Pezzani[64]
15 October 1901  André Lénéka[65]
1902  Lagoanère and Lénéka[66]
1904  Armand Bour[67]
1905  Monza and Darcour[68]
October 1906  Clot and Dublay[69]
1907  Deval and Richemond[70]
1909  Mme Cora-Laparcerie[71]
1913  Gustave Quinson[72][73]
1927  Gustave Quinson, Albert Willemetz[74]
1929  Albert Willemetz[74]
1958  Nicky Nancel (Madame Mondavi)[72][73]
1986  Jean-Claude Brialy[72]
2007  Bruno Finck[72]

References

Notes
  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Bouffes-Parisien website.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Lamb, Andrew. "Offenbach, Jacques" in Sadie 1992, vol. 3, pp. 653–658.
  3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 3.21 3.22 3.23 Levin 2009, pp. 401–402.
  4. ↑ Galignani 1862, p. 470.
  5. ↑ Dickens 1882, p. 32.
  6. ↑ Lamb ( "Offenbach, Jacques" in Sadie 1992, vol. 3, p. 653) gives the capacity of the Salle Lacaze as 300. Gammond (1980, p. 37) says it held an audience of only 50.
  7. ↑ Faris 1980, pp. 51–52.
  8. ↑ Lamb ( "Offenbach, Jacques" in Sadie 1992, vol. 3, p. 653) gives the capacity of 900; Faris (1980, pp. 52–53) provides an extensive quote from the periodical Le Ménestrel describing the demolition and reconstruction of the theatre and the size of the orchestra.
  9. ↑ Yon 2000, pp. 760–762.
  10. ↑ During the summer of 1858 the company went on tour, and Offenbach sublet the Salle Lacaze to Jean-Charles Deburau (Yon 2000, p. 201). During the summer of 1860 the company performed in Brussels and Lyon. Offenbach himself went to Berlin to supervise the rehearsals and conduct the Berlin premiere of Orphée aux enfers at the Friedrich-Wilhelmstädtisches Theater on 23 June 1860 (Yon 2000, pp. 232–233).
  11. ↑ Levin 2009, p. 401.
  12. ↑ Lamb, Andrew. "Orphée aux enfers" in Sadie 1992, vol. 3, pp. 774–776.
  13. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 360–362.
  14. ↑ Lamb, Andrew. "Hervé" in Sadie 1992, vol. 2, p. 708.
  15. ↑ Gänzl 2001, p. 722.
  16. ↑ "Lecocq, [Alexandre] Charles" in Gänzl 2001, pp. 1165–1168.
  17. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 1602–1603.
  18. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 590–591.
  19. ↑ Traubner 2003, p. 91; Gänzl 2001, pp.1494–1495.
  20. ↑ The date of the premiere is given as 16 March 1880 by Andrew Lamb "Varney, Louis" in Sadie 1992, vol. 4, p. 901 (see also OCLC 457931152), but as 16 May 1880 by Levin 2009, p. 402.
  21. ↑ Traubner 2003, p. 91; Gänzl 2001, pp. 1341–1343.
  22. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 763–764.
  23. ↑ Klein, Axel: O'Kelly - An Irish Musical Family in Nineteenth-Century France (Norderstedt 2014). ISBN 978-3-7357-2310-9.
  24. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 1038–1040.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 "Pugno, [Stéphane] Raoul" in Gänzl 2001, p. 1662.
  26. ↑ "Roger, Victor" in Gänzl 2001, pp. 1733–1734.
  27. ↑ "Messager, André" in Gänzl 2001, pp. 1379–1382.
  28. ↑ Charlton, David. "Vidal, Paul (Antonin)" in Sadie 1992, vol. 4, pp. 987–988.
  29. ↑ Gänzl 2001, p. 1297.
  30. ↑ Gänzl 2001, p. 1307.
  31. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 581–582.
  32. ↑ Gänzl 2001, p. 530.
  33. ↑ Gänzl 2001, p. 1490.
  34. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 1660–1662.
  35. ↑ Wagstaff 1992.
  36. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 2126–2127.
  37. ↑ Charlton, David. "Terrasse, Claude (Antoine)" in Sadie 1992, vol. 4, p. 700.
  38. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 2067–2068.
  39. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 1611–1613.
  40. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 480–482.
  41. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 1139–1140.
  42. ↑ Gänzl 2001, p. 457.
  43. ↑ Gänzl 2001, p. 578.
  44. ↑ Gänzl 2001, p. 2079.
  45. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 1625–1626.
  46. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 2077–2078.
  47. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 1008–1009.
  48. ↑ Gänzl 2001, p. 668.
  49. ↑ Gänzl 2001, p. 87.
  50. ↑ Gänzl 2001, pp. 2056–2057.
  51. ↑ Levin indicates that the company was a private entrepreneurship from its founding in 1855 up until 1885, which is the extent of her coverage of the topic. See Table 16.8. "Chronology and administration of the Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens company" in Levin 2009, p. 399.
  52. ↑ 52.0 52.1 52.2 52.3 52.4 52.5 52.6 52.7 52.8 Levin 2009, p. 399.
  53. ↑ Levin 2009, p. 399, indicates that the theatre was closed. The company's website states that the closure was due to the Franco-Prussian War. (See "Historique" at the Bouffes-Parisiens website, retrieved 20 August 2011).
  54. ↑ "Cantin, Louis" in Gänzl 2001, pp. 308–309. According to Gänzl, Cantin gave up his directorship in 1885.
  55. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1885, p. 62.
  56. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1888, p. 56.
  57. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1889, p. 57.
  58. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1890, p. 58; Le Boulevard: Croquis Parisiens 1893, p. 191.
  59. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1892, p. 64; Le Boulevard: Croquis Parisiens 1893, p. 191.
  60. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1893, p. 66; Almanach Hachette 1895, p. 452.
  61. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1895, p. 69; Gänzl 2001, p. 1490.
  62. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1897, p. 57; Bulletin officiel 1899, vol. 65, p. 352.
  63. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1899, p. 65.
  64. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1900, p. 63.
  65. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1901, p. 71; Martin 1901, p. 404.
  66. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1902, p. 68.
  67. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1904, p. 69.
  68. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1905, p. 76.
  69. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1906, p. 78.
  70. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1907, p. 81.
  71. ↑ Almanach des spectacles. Année 1909, p. 78.
  72. ↑ 72.0 72.1 72.2 72.3 "Historique" at the Bouffes-Parisiens website, retrieved 20 August 2011.
  73. ↑ 73.0 73.1 "Les Théâtres parisiens: Bouffes-Parisiens" at the website Encyclopédie multimedia de la comédie musicale, 1918–1940, retrieved 20 August 2011.
  74. ↑ 74.0 74.1 Gänzl 2001, p. 2198.
Sources
  • Dickens, Charles (1882). Dicken's Dictionary of Paris, 1882. An Unconventional Handbook. London: Macmillan. View at Google Books.
  • Faris, Alexander (1980). Jacques Offenbach. London & Boston: Faber and Faber. ISBN 978-0-571-11147-3.
  • Fauser, Annegret, editor; Everist, Mark, editor (2009). Music, theater, and cultural transfer. Paris, 1830–1914. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-23926-2.
  • Galignani, A. and W., publishers (1862). Galignani's New Paris Guide for 1862. Paris: A. and W. Galignani. View at Google Books.
  • Gammond, Peter (1980). Offenbach. London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-7119-0257-2.
  • Gänzl, Kurt (2001). The Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre, second edition. New York: Schirmer Books. ISBN 978-0-02-864970-2.
  • Levin, Alicia (2009). "A documentary overview of musical theaters in Paris, 1830–1900" in Fauser 2009, pp. 379–402.
  • Martin, Jules (1901). Nos Artistes: Annuaire des Théâtres et Concerts, 1901–1902. Paris: Ollendorff. View at Google Books.
  • Sadie, Stanley, editor (1992). The New Grove Dictionary of Opera (4 volumes). London: Macmillan. ISBN 978-1-56159-228-9.
  • Wagstaff, John (1992). "Véronique" in Sadie 1992, vol. 4, pp. 961–962.
  • Yon, Jean-Claude (2000). Jacques Offenbach. [Paris]: Galimard. ISBN 978-2-07-074775-7.

External links

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