Pierre-Étienne Piestre, known as Eugène Cormon (5 May 1810 – March 1903), was a French

dramatist A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

and

librettist A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major litu ...

. He used his mother's name, Cormon, during his career. Cormon wrote dramas,

comedies Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term origin ...

and, from the 1840s, libretti; around 150 of his works were published. He was

stage manager Stage management is a broad field that is generally defined as the practice of organization and coordination of an event or theatrical production. Stage management may encompass a variety of activities including the overseeing of the rehearsal p ...

at the

Paris Opéra The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be k ...

from 1859 to 1870, and administrator of the

Théâtre du Vaudeville The Théâtre du Vaudeville was a theatre company in Paris. It opened on 12 January 1792 on rue de Chartres. Its directors, Piis and Barré, mainly put on "petites pièces mêlées de couplets sur des airs connus", including vaudevilles. Af ...

from 1874. His libretti include ''

Les dragons de Villars ''Les dragons de Villars'' (''The Dragoons of Villars'') is an opéra-comique in three acts by Aimé Maillart to a libretto by Lockroy and Eugène Cormon. The story of the opera was said to have been borrowed from ''La Petite Fadette'' by George ...

'' (with Lockroy), ''Gastibelza'' (with d'Ennery) and ''Les pêcheurs de Catane'' (with Carré) for Maillart, ''

Les pêcheurs de perles ' (''The Pearl Fishers'') is an opera in three acts by the French composer Georges Bizet, to a libretto by Eugène Cormon and Michel Carré. It was premiered on 30 September 1863 at the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris, and was given 18 performances ...

'' (with Carré) for

Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', which has become on ...

, ''

Robinson Crusoé ''Robinson Crusoé '' is an opéra comique with music by Jacques Offenbach and words by Eugène Cormon and Hector-Jonathan Crémieux. It premiered in Paris on 23 November 1867. The writers took the theme from the 1719 novel ''Robinson Crusoe'' b ...

'' (with Crémieux) for Offenbach, and ''Les Bleuets'' (with Trianon) for Cohen. The Fontainebleau act as well as the auto-da-fé scene of

Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the ...

's opera ''

Don Carlos ''Don Carlos'' is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French-language libretto by Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle, based on the dramatic play '' Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien'' (''Don Carlos, Infante of Spain'') by Fried ...

'' is based in part on Cormon's 1846 play ''Philippe II, Roi d'Espagne'' ("''Philip II, King of Spain''"). At the

Moscow Art Theatre The Moscow Art Theatre (or MAT; russian: Московский Художественный академический театр (МХАТ), ''Moskovskiy Hudojestvenny Akademicheskiy Teatr'' (МHАТ)) was a theatre company in Moscow. It was f ...

in 1927 the seminal Russian theatre practitioner

Constantin Stanislavski Konstantin Sergeyevich Stanislavski ( Alekseyev; russian: Константин Сергеевич Станиславский, p=kənstɐnʲˈtʲin sʲɪrˈgʲejɪvʲɪtɕ stənʲɪˈslafskʲɪj; 7 August 1938) was a seminal Russian Soviet Fe ...

staged Cormon's

melodrama A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exce ...

''The Gérard Sisters'' ('' The Two Orphans''), which he co-wrote with

Adolphe d'Ennery Adolphe Philippe d'Ennery or Dennery (17 June 181125 January 1899) was a French playwright and novelist. Life Born in Paris, his real surname was Philippe. He obtained his first success in collaboration with Charles Desnoyer in ''Émile, ou le ...

.Benedetti (1999), p. 314 and p. 388).

Plays

*''Les Crochets du père Martin''. Drama in three acts (with

Eugène Grangé Eugène Grangé (16 December 1810 – 1 March 1887) was a French playwright, librettist, chansonnier and goguettier. Biography The son of Pierre-Joseph Basté and Louise-Thérèse Grangé, Pierre-Eugène Basté was born in rue Beautreillis i ...

, 1858) *''Le Château Trompette''. Opera by

François-Auguste Gevaert François-Auguste Gevaert (31 July 1828 in Huysse, near Oudenaarde – 24 December 1908 in Brussels) was a Belgian musicologist and composer.N. Slonimsky, Ed., ''Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians'', 8th ed., Schirmer Books, NY Li ...

(with

Michel Carré Michel Carré (20 October 1821, Besançon – 27 June 1872, Argenteuil) was a prolific French librettist. He went to Paris in 1840 intending to become a painter but took up writing instead. He wrote verse and plays before turning to writing lib ...

, 1860) *'' The Two Orphans''. Drama in five acts (with

, 20 January 1874) *''Une Cause célèbre''. Drama in six acts (with

, 1877) *''

Eine Nacht in Venedig '' Eine Nacht in Venedig '' (''A Night in Venice'') is an operetta in three acts by Johann Strauss II. Its libretto was by F. Zell and Richard Genée based on ''Le Château Trompette'' by Eugène Cormon and Richard Genée. The farcical, romanti ...

''. Operetta by

Johann Strauss II Johann Baptist Strauss II (25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (german: links=no, Sohn), was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed ove ...

( F. Zell and

Richard Genée Franz Friedrich Richard Genée (7 February 1823 – 15 June 1895) was a Prussian born Austrian librettist, playwright, and composer. Life Genée was born in Danzig. He died at Baden bei Wien. Works He is most famous for the libretto of ''Die ...

, 1883, based on ''Le Château Trompette'')

Filmography

*''

A Celebrated Case ''A Celebrated Case'' is a 1914 American silent drama film starring Alice Joyce, Guy Coombs and Marguerite Courtot. It is based on the 1877 play ''Une cause célèbre'' by Adolphe Philippe Dennery and Eugene Cormon. A French soldier is wrongful ...

'', directed by

George Melford George H. Melford (born George Henry Knauff, February 19, 1877 – April 25, 1961) was an American stage and film actor and director. Often taken for granted as a director today, the stalwart Melford's name by the 1920s was, like Cecil B. DeMil ...

(1914, based on the play ''Une Cause célèbre'') *'' The Two Orphans'', directed by

Herbert Brenon Herbert Brenon (born Alexander Herbert Reginald St. John Brenon; 13 January 1880 – 21 June 1958) was an Irish-born U.S. film director, actor and screenwriter during the era of silent films through the 1930s. Brenon was among the early film ...

(1915, based on the play ''The Two Orphans'') *''

Orphans of the Storm ''Orphans of the Storm'' is a 1921 American silent drama film by D. W. Griffith set in late-18th-century France, before and during the French Revolution. The last Griffith film to feature both Lillian and Dorothy Gish, it was a commercial failu ...

'', directed by

D. W. Griffith David Wark Griffith (January 22, 1875 – July 23, 1948) was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the n ...

(1921, based on the play ''The Two Orphans'') *'' The Two Orphans'', directed by

Maurice Tourneur Maurice may refer to: People * Saint Maurice (died 287), Roman legionary and Christian martyr *Maurice (emperor) or Flavius Mauricius Tiberius Augustus (539–602), Byzantine emperor *Maurice (bishop of London) (died 1107), Lord Chancellor and L ...

(France, 1933, based on the play ''The Two Orphans'') *', directed by

Mario Bonnard Mario Bonnard (24 December 1889 – 22 March 1965) was an Italian actor and film director. Bonnard was born and died in Rome. He began his cinematic career as an actor becoming a popular romantic lead in numerous silent films made before World ...

(Italy, 1940, based on the play ''Les Crochets du père Martin'') *'' The Two Orphans'', directed by

Carmine Gallone Carmine Gallone (10 September 1885 – 11 March 1973) was an early Italian film director, screenwriter, and film producer, who was also controversial for his works of pro-Fascist propaganda and historical revisionism. Considered one of Itali ...

(Italy, 1942, based on the play ''The Two Orphans'') *'' The Two Orphans'', directed by José Benavides (Mexico, 1944, based on the play ''The Two Orphans'') *'' The Two Orphans'', directed by

Hassan al-Imam Hassan al-Imam ( ar, حسن الإمام; March 6, 1919 in Mansoura, Egypt – January 29, 1988) was a prominent Egyptian film director. He was nicknamed the Box-office King, made three films listed in the Top 100 Egyptian films list. Early lif ...

(Egypt, 1949, based on the play ''The Two Orphans'') *'' The Two Orphans'', directed by Roberto Rodríguez (Mexico, 1950, based on the play ''The Two Orphans'') *'' A Night in Venice'', directed by

Georg Wildhagen Georg Wildhagen (15 September 1920 – 2 December 1990) Walter Habel (ed.): ''Wildhagen, Georg'', in: '' Wer ist wer? Das deutsche Who’s Who'', vol. 15, Berlin: Arani-Verlag, 1967, p. 2178 u.ö.previewat Google Books was a German screenwriter and ...

(Austria, 1953, based on the operetta ''Eine Nacht in Venedig'') *'' The Two Orphans'', directed by

Giacomo Gentilomo Giacomo Gentilomo (5 April 1909 – 16 April 2001) was an Italian film director and painter. Biography Born in Trieste, at very young age Gentilomo moved to Rome, where at 21 years old he entered the cinema industry, working as a script survivo ...

(Italy, 1954, based on the play ''The Two Orphans'') *'' The Two Orphans'', directed by

Riccardo Freda Riccardo Freda (24 February 1909 – 20 December 1999) was an Italian film director. He worked in a variety of genres, including sword-and-sandal, horror, ''giallo'' and spy films. Freda began directing '' I Vampiri'' in 1956. The film became ...

(France/Italy, 1965, based on the play ''The Two Orphans'') *'' The Two Orphans'', directed by

Leopoldo Savona Leopoldo Savona (1922–2000) was an Italian actor, director, choreographer, and screenwriter. He directed 18 films between 1954 and 1976. He was sometimes credited as Leo Colman or Leo Coleman. Life and career Born in Lenola, Latina, he start ...

(Spain, 1976, based on the play ''The Two Orphans'')

References

Sources

*Benedetti, Jean (1999), ''Stanislavski: His Life and Art''. Revised edition. Original edition published in 1988. London: Methuen. . *

Budden, Julian Julian Medforth Budden (9 April 1924 in Hoylake, Wirral – 28 February 2007 in Florence, Italy) was a British opera scholar, radio producer and broadcaster. He is particularly known for his three volumes on the operas of Giuseppe Verdi (publis ...

(1984), ''The Operas of Verdi, Volume 3: From Don Carlos to Falstaff''. London: Cassell. *Kimball, David (2001), in Holden, Amanda (Ed.), ''The New Penguin Opera Guide'', New York: Penguin Putnam, 2001. * Walsh, T. J. (1981), ''Second Empire Opera: The Théâtre Lyrique Paris 1851–1870.'' London: John Calder. *Wright, Lesley (1998), "Eugene Cormon" in Stanley Sadie, (Ed.), ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'', Vol. One. London: Macmillan Publishers, Inc. 1998 ISzrgbb BN 0-333-73432-7

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cormon, Eugene 1810 births 1903 deaths French opera librettists Writers from Lyon 19th-century French dramatists and playwrights Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur