Opera in four acts by Massenet to a libretto by Henri Cain after Perrault (1899, Paris).
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Opera in four acts by Massenet to a libretto by Henri Cain after Perrault (1899, Paris).
| Who's Who in Opera: Cendrillon |
Cendrillon (Cinderella) (Massenet). Libretto by Henri Cain; 4 acts; first performance Paris 1899, conducted by Alexandre Luigini.
The fairy-story of Cinderella: Pandolfe and his wife, Mme de la Haltière, depart for the royal ball, taking her daughters Noémie and Dorothée with them but leaving Cendrillon behind. She falls asleep. A Fairy Godmother appears, gives her glass slippers and sends her to the ball, but tells her she must leave at midnight. Prince Charming falls in love with Cendrillon. As midnight strikes she leaves, losing a glass slipper. Prince Charming searches the country for the lady whose foot fits the slipper. All ends happily. See also Cenerentola, La.
| Wikipedia: Cendrillon |
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Operas
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Cendrillon (Cinderella) is an opera—billed as a "fairy tale"—in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Cain. It was composed in 1894–95 and was first performed at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on 24 May 1899, at the height of Massenet's success. An immediate hit, with fifty performances in its first season, it is one of Massenet's most charming pieces and, after Manon and Werther, is one of the most frequently performed of his twenty-five operas, although it is not part of the standard operatic repertoire. The libretto is based on Perrault's version of the Cinderella fairy tale, very similar to the version most widely known in the US.
The part of boyish Prince Charming is a breeches role, sung by a Falcon soprano— or "Soprano de sentiment"— according to the libretto, a dark dramatic and characteristically French soprano voice. (In some productions, including the work's only recording, the part has been transposed for a tenor.) This fach is contrasted in Cendrillon's other scenes with the coloratura writing for her fairy godmother. The 18th-century touch that a breeches role brings is echoed in witty pastiche of galante music, such as the trio of lute, viola d'amore and flute that fails to rouse the melancholy and silent Prince Charming at the opening of Act II. There is a bright and worldly ballet, a series of entrées at the ball of princesses who fail to satisfy the Prince, contrasted with the spectral ballet under a "bluish light" in Act IV, where Cain interposes an episode unique to this Cinderella, in which Lucette (as Cendrillon is called) and her Prince are kept apart and tested by the arts of la Fée (Fairy Godmother). Much witty patter tuned to the nuances of French sustains a light atmosphere throughout. The Fairy Godmother's coloratura trills and arpeggios are especially magical.
Contents |
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast[1], 24 May 1899 (Conductor: - Alexandre Luigini) |
|---|---|---|
| Lucette/Cendrillon (Cinderella) | soprano | Julia Guiraudon |
| Madame de la Haltière, stepmother of Cendrillon | contralto | Marie-Blanche Deschamps-Jehin |
| Le Prince Charmant (Prince Charming) | mezzo-soprano | Émelen |
| La Fée (the Fairy) | soprano | Georgette Bréjean-Gravière |
| Noémie, stepsister of Cendrillon | soprano | Jeanne Tiphaine |
| Dorothée, stepsister of Cendrillon | mezzo-soprano | Jeanne Marié de L'Isle |
| Pandolfe, Cendrillon’s father | bass | Lucien Fugère |
| Le Roi (the King) | baritone | Dubosc |
| Le Doyen de la Faculté | tenor | Gourdon |
| Le Surintendant des plaisirs | baritone | Étienne Troy |
| Le Premier Ministre | bass | Gustave Huberdeau |
| 1rst spirit | mezzo-soprano | Marie Delorn |
| 2nd spirit | soprano | Françoise Oswald |
| 3rd spirit | soprano | Vilma |
| 4th spirit | mezzo-soprano | Stéphane |
| 5th spirit | soprano | Craponne |
| 6th spirit | soprano | Fouqué |
| A ballerina | mute | Jeanne Chasles |
For the Italian opera by Gioacchino Rossini, see La Cenerentola.
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| Mme de la Haltière (character) | |
| Dorothée (character) | |
| Noémie (character) |
| In cendrillon what does nannin tell cendrillon to get as the carrige? Read answer... |
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