''Chilpéric'' () is an ''
opéra bouffe
Opéra bouffe (, plural: ''opéras bouffes'') is a genre of late 19th-century French operetta, closely associated with Jacques Offenbach, who produced many of them at the Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens, inspiring the genre's name.
Opéras bouf ...
'' with libretto and music by
Hervé
Hervé is a French language, French masculine given name of Breton language, Breton origin, from the name of the 6th-century Breton Saint Hervé. The common latinization of the name is Herveus (also ''Haerveus''), an early (8th-century) latinizati ...
, first produced in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
on 24 October 1868 at the
Théâtre des Folies-Dramatiques
The Théâtre des Folies-Dramatiques was a theatre in Paris in the 19th and 20th centuries. Opened first in 1832 in the site of the old Théâtre de l'Ambigu-Comique on the Boulevard du Temple, under Frédérick Lemaître it became a noted venue ...
.
A
burlesque
A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects. of the medieval, ''Chilpéric'' starred Hervé in the title role.
During a successful revival of the operetta at the Théâtre des Variétés in Paris in 1895,
Henri Toulouse-Lautrec
Comte Henri Marie Raymond de Toulouse-Lautrec-Monfa (24 November 1864 – 9 September 1901) was a French painter, printmaker, draughtsman, caricaturist and illustrator whose immersion in the colourful and theatrical life of Paris in th ...
painted
Marcelle Lender
Marcelle Lender (1862 – 27 September 1926) was a French singer, dancer and entertainer made famous in paintings by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.Brocklehurst, Hannah & Foule, Frances (2018), ''Toulouse-Lautrec & the Art of Celebrity'', Na ...
performing a bolero from the operetta in his painting ''Chilpéric''.
Roles
Background
![Chilperic I & Fredegunde00](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/Chilperic_I_%26_Fredegunde00.jpg)
Hervé had written one act operettas for many years, which due to the licensing system in Paris until 1858 was all that was allowed for the theatres where his works were presented. In 1858 this restriction was removed and his first full-length ''opéra bouffe'' ''
Les chevaliers de la Table Ronde'' was produced at the
Théâtre des Bouffes Parisiens in 1866 with great success. This was followed by ''
L'œil crevé
''L'œil crevé'' (literally "The pierced eye", more loosely "It hit me right in the eye") is an ''opéra bouffe'' with libretto and music by Hervé, first produced in Paris on 12 October 1867 at the Théâtre des Folies-Dramatiques.
Main roles
...
'' ("The pierced eye") at the Théâtre des Folies-Dramatiques in 1867, also a success, so the theatre accepted a new piece by Hervé for 1868. These pieces, along with the same composer's ''
Le petit Faust
''Le petit Faust'' is an opéra bouffe in four acts which burlesques the drama ''Faust'' by Goethe and the opera of the same name by Gounod. The music of the piece is by Hervé, with a text by Hector-Jonathan Crémieux and Adolphe Jaime. The work ...
'' of 1869, represent burlesque - comic treatment of serious subjects, full of deliberate anachronisms and zany situations - at its most extreme.
[
The published libretto of ''Chilpéric'' is preceded by a foreword which says in part: "First of all let's explain our plan ... Our plan? ... Oh dear, we don't have one ... Ah! just one thing: that of making the audience laugh between our musical numbers."][
The real ]Chilperic I
Chilperic I (c. 539 – September 584) was the king of Neustria (or Soissons) from 561 to his death. He was one of the sons of the Frankish king Clotaire I and Queen Aregund.
Life
Immediately after the death of his father in 561, he en ...
was the fourth son of Clotaire I
Chlothar I, sometime called "the Old" ( French: le Vieux), (died December 561) also anglicised as Clotaire, was a king of the Franks of the Merovingian dynasty and one of the four sons of Clovis I.
Chlothar's father, Clovis I, divided the kin ...
. He shared the kingdom of Soissons (561), tried to rob his brother Sigebert and kidnapped him, but was repulsed and nearly lost his lands. Husband of Galswinthe, he had her strangled to please his mistress, Fredegonde, whom he married afterwards. Fredegonde herself, as Queen, murdered Sigebert and put down his wife Brunehaut. She may have had her husband killed to prevent him finding out about her affair with a subject named Landry. All these historical personages appear in somewhat warped form in the operetta.
Synopsis
''Chilpéric'' is based on the story of the Merovingian
The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gauli ...
king Chilperic I
Chilperic I (c. 539 – September 584) was the king of Neustria (or Soissons) from 561 to his death. He was one of the sons of the Frankish king Clotaire I and Queen Aregund.
Life
Immediately after the death of his father in 561, he en ...
, who ruled from 561 to 584.
Scene - Gaul
Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...
, 567.
Act I
King Chilpéric has come to the woods on horseback attended by some of his knights, also mounted, to consult with the Druids
A druid was a member of the high-ranking class in ancient Celtic cultures. Druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no written accounts. Whi ...
as to whether he will win success in his next battle. There he discovers Landry, a shepherd, and his fiancée Frédégonde. Chilpéric takes a fancy to Frédégonde and offers to bring her to court, giving her a job as a "laundress, etc." but actually intending to make her his mistress. Landry is also offered a job at court to serve as the King's ''major domo
A majordomo is a person who speaks, makes arrangements, or takes charge for another. Typically, this is the highest (''major'') person of a household (''domūs'' or ''domicile'') staff, a head servant who acts on behalf of the owner of a large ...
'' . A sudden thunderstorm produces panic in the King's and knights' horses, who bolt for shelter with their riders atop them as the Druids protect themselves from the elements with umbrellas of differing colours.
Act 2
Chilpéric has taken Frédégonde as his mistress, which is infuriating Brunehaut, the Spanish-born wife of Chilpéric's brother Sigibert. Brunehaut had gone to a lot of trouble to arrange a marriage between the King and her sister Princess Galswinthe, her secret plan being then to murder them both and claim the throne for her husband and herself as their nearest relatives. However the marriage is still planned since it is a matter of a diplomatic alliance between Gaul and Spain. Meanwhile, Brunehaut has seduced the handsome Landry, consoling him for the loss of his sweetheart Frédégonde. It is necessary for the King to break off his relationship with Frédégonde due to his impending marriage to the Spanish princess but Frédégonde determines not to go quietly. Princess Galswinthe arrives with her attendants from Spain and is welcomed with great ceremony and festivities but Frédégonde interrupts the celebrations, shrieking in fury as she is carried into the middle of the throne room on a sedan chair
The litter is a class of wheelless vehicles, a type of human-powered transport, for the transport of people. Smaller litters may take the form of open chairs or beds carried by two or more carriers, some being enclosed for protection from the e ...
, which however breaks apart and she is turned out.
Act 3
In the bridal chamber, awaiting Chilpéric and Galswinthe after their wedding, a lot of plotting is going on. Frédégonde has used her charms to persuade the Grand légendaire, a court official, to strangle Galswinthe that very night, Brunehaut talked her lover Landry into murdering his ex-sweetheart Frédégonde and Chilpéric has worked out that Brunehaut is up to no good and ordered his doctor to feed her poison.
Chilpéric is forced away from his marriage bed by an attack by his brother Sigibert's forces at the city gates. The doctor, the Grand légendaire and Landry attempt to murder Brunehaut, Galswinthe and Frédégonde respectively, in the dark in the bridal chamber but the ladies put up a stiff resistance and chaos ensues until a button is pressed and they all fall through a trap door into the dungeon (along with the bed). Chilpéric returns, victorious from his battle, rescues Galswinthe, pardons Frédégonde and does not administer any punishments beyond a few spankings to any of the other plotters.
Reception and performance history
''Chilpéric'' was a success in its original production with a run of over one hundred performances. Live horses featured in the staging, Hervé in his role as the King made his entrance on horseback singing the deliberately silly ''Chanson du jambon'' ("Ham song"). The finale to the first act, with the orchestra depicting a thunderstorm, several horses with their riders onstage running around in panic, and a chorus of Druids singing and dancing while twirling umbrellas of varying colours, created a sensation and became famous. As well as the hilarity caused by the libretto, Hervé's vivacious and tuneful music won praise. Among other pieces, a waltz song for Frédégonde and the bolero for Galswinthe depicted in Toulouse-Lautrec's painting, are especially notable.
The then Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
attended one of the performances in the original run and remarked "What a pity that Hervé does not know English! If he came to London, he would have a huge success." This was reported to Hervé who learnt English in a few months and accordingly the piece was mounted in London at the Lyceum Theatre in 1870 in English starring the author and Selina Dolaro
Selina Simmons Belasco Dolaro (20 August 1849 – 23 January 1889) was an English singer, actress, theatre manager and writer of the late Victorian era. During her career in operetta and other forms of musical theatre, she managed several of ...
. The Prince of Wales attended one of the London performances and enjoyed Hervé's performance of the ''Chanson du jambon'' on horseback in the first act so much that he expressed a wish that he could hear it again so Hervé came riding into the second act scene of the throne room, again on horseback, and repeated the number. The operetta had several successful productions in London, including an adaptation by H. B. Farnie
Henry Brougham Farnie (8 April 1836 – 21 September 1889), often called H. B. Farnie, was a British librettist and adapter of French operettas and an author. Some of his English-language versions of operettas became record-setting hits on the ...
at the Empire Theatre in 1884 and was given in New York in 1874, in English. It was also given in various adaptations in Australia, in Berlin and in Vienna in the 19th century. By the beginning of the 20th century however audience taste in operetta had moved away from this style of extravagant zaniness to a more bourgeois kind of work and ''Chilpéric'' was only rarely performed.
The work was revived by L'Atelier Lyrique Angevin at the Grand Théâtre d'Angers
Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the prov ...
, France, in 2015.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chilperic
1868 operas
French-language operas
Opéras bouffes
Operas
Operas by Hervé