''Francesca di Foix'' is a ''

melodramma ''Melodramma'' (plural: ''melodrammi'') is a 17th-century Italian term for a text to be set as an opera, or the opera itself. In the 19th century, it was used in a much narrower sense by English writers to discuss developments in the early Italia ...

giocoso'' (

comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...

) in one act by

Gaetano Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the '' bel canto'' opera style dur ...

with a

libretto 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 theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

by Domenico Gilardoni based on one by

Jean-Nicolas Bouilly Jean-Nicolas Bouilly (24 January 1763 – 14 April 1842) was a French playwright, librettist, children's writer, and politician of the French Revolution. He is best known for writing a libretto, supposedly based on a true story, about a woman who ...

and Emmanuel Mercier-Dupaty for

Henri Montan Berton Henri-Montan Berton (17 September 1767 – 22 April 1844) was a French composer, teacher, and writer, mostly known as a composer of operas for the Opéra-Comique. Career Henri-Montan Berton was born the son of Pierre Montan Berton.Charlton ...

's 3-act opéra-comique ''Françoise de Foix'', inspired by the life of

Françoise de Foix Françoise de Foix, Comtesse de Châteaubriant (; c. 1495 – 16 October 1537) was a chief mistress of Francis I of France. Background Françoise was the daughter of Jean de Foix, Vicomte de Lautrec, and Jeanne d'Aydie. Her father was the son of ...

. It received its first performance on 30 May 1831 at the

Teatro San Carlo The Real Teatro di San Carlo ("Royal Theatre of Saint Charles"), as originally named by the Bourbon monarchy but today known simply as the Teatro (di) San Carlo, is an opera house in Naples, Italy, connected to the Royal Palace and adjacent t ...

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

Performance history

The opera is chiefly known for having provided segments to other Donizetti operas, including ''

Ugo, conte di Parigi ''Ugo, conte di Parigi'' (''Hugo, Count of Paris'') is a ''tragedia lirica'', or tragic opera, in two acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto after Hippolyte-Louis-Florent Bis's ''Blanche d'Aquitaine''. It premiered ...

'', ''

L'elisir d'amore ''L'elisir d'amore'' (''The Elixir of Love'', ) is a ' (opera buffa) in two acts by the Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto, after Eugène Scribe's libretto for Daniel Auber's ' (1831). The opera premiere ...

'' and ''

Gabriella di Vergy ''Gabriella di Vergy'' is an opera seria in two acts by Gaetano Donizetti written in 1826 and revised in 1838, from a libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola, which was based on the tragedy ''Gabrielle de Vergy'' (1777) by Dormont De Belloy. Prior to ...

'' although a complete recording exists on the ''

Opera Rara Opera Rara is a London-based opera company and recording label which specialises in recording and performing forgotten operatic repertoire from the 19th and early 20th centuries. Founded in 1970 by bel canto enthusiasts Patric Schmid and Don Whi ...

'' label. It was given in London in November 2013, along with

Debussy (Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the ...

's '' L'enfant prodigue'' as a double bill, at the

Guildhall School of Music The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a conservatoire and drama school located in the City of London, United Kingdom. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz ...

staged by the Australian opera director Stephen Barlow.

Roles

Synopsis

:Time: The Middle Ages :Place: FranceOsborne, p. 200 The Count is determined to keep his beautiful wife Francesca well away from the temptations of the French court. Knowing the amorous ways of the nobility he tells them that she is unwilling to appear in public because she is extremely ugly. Unfortunately this raises the interest of the King who despatches one of his gentlemen (the Duke) to investigate, and if he finds that the Countess is beautiful he must lure her back incognito to court. Sure enough the Duke is able to persuade Francesca to return to Paris with him. Rather than admit his deceit her husband at first refuses to acknowledge who she is. To force his hand the King announces that a tournament is to be held and the winning knight will be given Francesca's hand in marriage. The Count can no longer keep up his subterfuge and admits that, driven by jealousy, he lied to the King and his courtiers. After due admonishment by the King all is forgiven and the Count and Countess live happily ever after.

Recordings

References

Notes Cited sources * Ashbrook, William (1982), ''Donizetti and His Operas'', Cambridge University Press. * Ashbrook, William (1992). "Donizetti, (Domenico) Gaetano (Maria): work-list" in Sadie 1992, vol. 1, pp. 1215–1218. * Cook, Elizabeth (1992). "Saint-Amans, Louis Joseph" in Sadie 1992, vol. 4, p. 125. * Osborne, Charles (1994). ''The Bel Canto Operas of Rossini, Donizetti, and Bellini''. Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press. . * Pitou, Spire (1983–1990). ''The Paris Opéra: An Encyclopedia of Operas, Ballets, Composers, and Performers'' (3 volumes). Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. . *

Sadie, Stanley Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was an influential and prolific British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was publ ...

, editor (1992). ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Opera ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' is an encyclopedia of opera, considered to be one of the best general reference sources on the subject. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volu ...

'' (4 volumes). London: Macmillan. . * Sadie, Stanley, editor; John Tyrell; executive editor (2001). ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...

'', 2nd edition. London: Macmillan. (hardcover). (eBook). * Smart, Mary Ann;

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 (publish ...

(2001), "Donizetti, (Domenico) Gaetano (Maria)" in Sadie. * Wild, Nicole; Charlton, David (2005). ''Théâtre de l'Opéra-Comique Paris: répertoire 1762-1972''. Sprimont, Belgium: Editions Mardaga. . Other sources *Ashbrook, William and Sarah Hibberd (2001), in Holden, Amanda (Ed.), ''The New Penguin Opera Guide'', New York: Penguin Putnam. . pp. 224 – 247. *Black, John (1982), ''Donizetti’s Operas in Naples, 1822—1848''. London: The Donizetti Society. * Weinstock, Herbert (1963), ''Donizetti and the World of Opera in Italy, Paris, and Vienna in the First Half of the Nineteenth Century'', New York: Pantheon Books.

External links

* (original at the Naples Conservatorio San Pietro a Majella)
Libretto for ''Francesca di Foix''
{{Authority control Operas by Gaetano Donizetti Italian-language operas 1831 operas Operas One-act operas Opera world premieres at the Teatro San Carlo Operas set in France