Joseph-Lambert Dupuis (known as José Dupuis) (18 March 1833,

Liège Liège ( , , ; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far from b ...

– 9 May 1900,

Nogent-sur-Marne Nogent-sur-Marne () is a Communes of France, commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. Nogent-sur-Marne is a ''Subprefectures in France, sous-préfecture'' of the Val-de-Marne ''Depar ...

) was a Belgian singer and actor. He was principally active in opéra-bouffe in Paris, in particular at the

Théâtre des Variétés The Théâtre des Variétés is a theatre and "salle de spectacles" at 7–8, boulevard Montmartre, 2nd arrondissement, in Paris. It was declared a monument historique in 1974. History It owes its creation to the theatre director Mademoiselle ...

Career

After making his stage debut in Liège, he moved to Paris in 1851 and made his debut at the Théâtre du Luxembourg-Bobino in 1854. In 1857 he was taken on 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 ...

at his Folies-Nouvelles, and continued when the theatre became the Théâtre Déjazet (after its joint manager

Virginie Déjazet Pauline Virginie Déjazet (30 August 17981 December 1875) was a French actress, famous soubrette, and a well-known travesti performer. Life Déjazet was born in Paris in 1798, and made her first appearance on the stage at the age of five. I ...

), only moving on, after fifty or so creations, to the

; he made his debut there on 18 May 1861 in ''Le Sylphe'', a

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

Edmond Rochefort Edmond Rochefort, full name Claude-Louis-Marie de Rochefort-Luçay (Évaux-les-Bains, 1790 – Paris, April 1871), was a French writer, dramatist, vaudevillist and songs writer. His only play that was met with some success is ''Jocko ou le Singe d ...

Charles Varin Charles Voirin, called Varin, (20 January 1798 (1er pluviôse an VI) – 24 April 1869) was a 19th-century French playwright. He also wrote under the pen names V. Warin and Victor. Biography Destined by his father to the profession of nota ...

and

Desvergers Desvergers, real name Armand-Sacré Chapeau, (1794 – 3rd arrondissement of Paris 26 June 1851 ) was a 19th-century French playwright Biography Little is known about Desvergers's life except the few lines that were dedicated to him by the med ...

. Dupuis was chosen by Offenbach for Paris in ''

La Belle Hélène ''La belle Hélène'' (, ''The Beautiful Helen'') is an opéra bouffe in three acts, with music by Jacques Offenbach and words by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. The piece parodies the story of Helen of Troy, Helen's elopement with Paris (myt ...

'', and alongside

Hortense Schneider Hortense Catherine Schneider, ''La Snédèr'', (30 April 1833 in Bordeaux, France – 5 May 1920, in Paris, France) was a French soprano, one of the greatest operetta stars of the 19th century, particularly associated with the works of composer J ...

, he went on to feature in principal roles in the premieres of some of Offenbach’s most famous works: '' Barbe-Bleue'' (title role), ''

La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein ''La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein'' (''The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein'') is an opéra bouffe (a form of operetta), in three acts and four tableaux by Jacques Offenbach to an original French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. The sto ...

'' (Fritz), ''

La Périchole ''La Périchole'' () is an opéra bouffe in three acts by Jacques Offenbach. Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy wrote the French libretto based on the 1829 one act play '' Le carrosse du Saint-Sacrement'' by Prosper Mérimée, which was revived on ...

'' (Piquillo), ''

Le pont des soupirs ''Le pont des soupirs '' ("The Bridge of Sighs") is an opéra bouffe (or operetta) set in Venice, by Jacques Offenbach, first performed in Paris in 1861. The French libretto was written by Hector Crémieux and Ludovic Halévy. Plays, including ...

'' (1868), ''

Les Brigands ''Les brigands'' (''The Bandits'') is an opéra bouffe, or operetta, by Jacques Offenbach to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. Meilhac and Halévy's libretto lampoons both serious drama (Schiller's play ''The Robbers'') an ...

'' (Falsacappa), ''Les braconniers'' (1873), ''La Boulangère a des écus'' (1875) and ''

Le docteur Ox ''Le docteur Ox'' is an opéra bouffe in three acts and six tableaux of 1877 with music by Jacques Offenbach. The French libretto was by Arnold Mortier and Philippe Gille, adapted from the 1872 short story '' Une fantaisie du docteur Ox'' by Jul ...

'' (1877). He also worked with Hervé, creating roles in ''Le Joueur de flûte'' (1864), ''Le Trône d'Écosse'' (1871), ''La Veuve du Malabar'' (1873), ''La Femme à Papa'' (1879), ''Lili'' (1882), ''La Cosaque'' (1884) and ''Mam'zelle Gavroche'' (1885). For Lecocq he premiered in ''Le Beau Dunois'' (1870) and ''Le grand Casimir'' (1879) - again at the Variétés. He appeared as Fritz and Paris until into his fifties, but in his late career also acted in theatre works, especially those of Meilhac and Halévy such as ''Les Moulins à vent'', ''Les Sonnettes'', ''La Petite Marquise'', ''L'Ingénue'', ''Le Passage de Vénus'', ''La Cigale'', ''Brigitte ou la Petite mère'', ''Décoré!''.Martin J. ''Nos artistes des théâtres et concerts.'' Paul Ollendorff, Paris, 1895. He retired in 1894 after a final revival of ''Les Brigands'' in 1893. He was twice married, first to Mlle Dantès of the Cirque-Impérial, then to Marie Dubois of the Variétés.

References

1833 births 1900 deaths Belgian operatic tenors Actors from Liège 19th-century Belgian male opera singers Musicians from Liège {{Belgium-opera-singer-stub