''Médée'' is a

French language French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in Nor ...

opéra-comique The Opéra-Comique is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief rival, the Comédie-Italienne ...

by Luigi Cherubini. The

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 ...

François-Benoît Hoffman François-Benoît Hoffman (11 July 1760 – 25 April 1828) was a French playwright and critic, best known today for his operatic librettos, including those set to music by Étienne Méhul and Luigi Cherubini (most notably Cherubini's ''Médée'', ...

(Nicolas Étienne Framéry) was based on

Euripides Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful e ...

tragedy Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy ...

Medea In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason an ...

and

Pierre Corneille Pierre Corneille (; 6 June 1606 – 1 October 1684) was a French tragedian. He is generally considered one of the three great seventeenth-century French dramatists, along with Molière and Racine. As a young man, he earned the valuable patronag ...

's play ''

Médée ''Médée'' is a dramatic tragedy in five acts written in alexandrine verse by Pierre Corneille in 1635. Summary The heroine of the play is the sorceress Médée. After Médée gives Jason twin boys, Jason leaves her for Creusa. Médée ...

''. It is set in the ancient city of

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part o ...

. The opera was premiered on 13 March 1797 at the

Théâtre Feydeau The Théâtre Feydeau (), a former Parisian theatre company, was founded in 1789 with the patronage of Monsieur, Comte de Provence (later to become Louis XVIII), and was therefore initially named the Théâtre de Monsieur. It began performing in t ...

, Paris. It met with a lukewarm reception and was not immediately revived. During the twentieth century, it was usually performed in Italian translation as ''Medea'', with the spoken dialogue replaced by

recitative Recitative (, also known by its Italian name "''recitativo''" ()) is a style of delivery (much used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas) in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms and delivery of ordinary speech. Recitative does not repea ...

s not authorized by the composer. More recently, opera companies have returned to Cherubini's original version. The long-lost final aria, which Cherubini appears to have elided from his original manuscript, was discovered by researchers from the

University of Manchester , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...

and

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

by employing x-ray techniques to reveal the blackened out areas of Cherubini's manuscript.

Performances and versions

Several versions of the opera were produced and staged in Italian and German: * 1800: German translation by Karl Alexander Herklots was premiered in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

on 17 February 1800 * 1802: Another German translation by

Georg Friedrich Treitschke Georg Friedrich Treitschke (; 29 August 1776 – 4 June 1842) was a German librettist, translator and lepidopterist. He was born in Leipzig and died in Vienna. In 1800 he came to the Vienna Hofoper. From 1809 to 1814 he was principal of the Vi ...

was premiered in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

on 6 November 1802. * 1809: The shortened version of the Treitschke translation was given in Vienna, where Cherubini produced a version which omitted some 500 bars of music * 1855:

Franz Lachner Franz Paul Lachner (2 April 1803 – 20 January 1890) was a German composer and conductor. Biography Lachner was born in Rain am Lech to a musical family (his brothers Ignaz, Theodor and Vinzenz also became musicians). He studied music with Si ...

's German version was given in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

. This was based on the shortened Vienna version, but with

s composed by Lachner which replaced the spoken dialogue. * 1865: The United Kingdom premiere was given in Italian at

Her Majesty's Theatre Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who established t ...

on 6 June, with recitatives by

Luigi Arditi Luigi Arditi (16 July 1822 – 1 May 1903) was an Italian violinist, composer and conductor. Life Arditi was born in Crescentino, Piemonte (Italy). He began his musical career as a violinist, and studied music at the Milan Conservatory under ...

, and

Thérèse Tietjens Thérèse Carolina Johanne Alexandra Tietjens (17 July 1831, Hamburg3 October 1877, London) was a leading opera and oratorio soprano. She made her career chiefly in London during the 1860s and 1870s, but her sequence of musical triumphs in th ...

in the title role. Cherubini's son and grandson were among the audience. This performance received a highly enthusiastic review in ''The Times''. Cherubini, Luigi - Medea - Restoration

* 1909: The Italian translation of the Lachner version by Carlo Zangarini was prepared for its Italian premiere at the Teatro alla Scala, on 30 December 1909, and starred Ester Mazzoleni. It was this hybrid version that was revived in 1953 for Maria Callas.

Callas revivals (1953–1962)

:Perhaps the most famous 20th-century revival of the work was in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

in 1953, with Maria Callas in the title role, conducted by

Vittorio Gui Vittorio Gui (14 September 188516 October 1975) was an Italian conductor, composer, musicologist and critic. Gui was born in Rome in 1885. He graduated in humanities at the University of Rome and also studied composition at the Accademia Naziona ...

. Callas learned and performed the role within a week, to critical acclaim. The production was so successful that the Teatro alla Scala decided to stage this opera during the opening week of its 1953–1954 season, with

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

filling in for an indisposed

Victor de Sabata Victor de Sabata (10 April 1892 – 11 December 1967) was an Italian conductor and composer. He is widely recognized as one of the most distinguished operatic conductors of the twentieth century, especially for his Verdi, Puccini and Wagner. D ...

and staged by

Margherita Wallmann Margarete Wallmann or Wallman (aka Margarethe Wallmann, Margherita Wallman or Margarita Wallmann) (22 June or July 1901 or 1904 – 2 May 1992) was a ballerina, choreographer, stage designer, and opera director. Life and career Born probably ...

. :Callas performed the role throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, with possibly the most famous production being by the

Dallas Opera The Dallas Opera is an American opera company located in Dallas, Texas. The company performs at the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House, one venue of the AT&T Performing Arts Center. History The company was founded in 1957 as the Dallas Civi ...

in 1958, conducted by Nicola Rescigno (with

Jon Vickers Jonathan Stewart Vickers, (October 29, 1926 – July 10, 2015), known professionally as Jon Vickers, was a Canadian heldentenor. Born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, he was the sixth in a family of eight children. In 1950, he was awarded a ...

as Jason and

Teresa Berganza Teresa Berganza Vargas OAXS (16 March 1933 – 13 May 2022) was a Spanish mezzo-soprano. She is most closely associated with roles such as Rossini's Rosina and La Cenerentola, and later Bizet's Carmen, admired for her technical virtuosity, m ...

as Néris) and directed by the Greek director

Alexis Minotis Alexis Minotis (; born Alexandros Minotakis ( el, Αλέξανδρος Μινωτάκης); 8 August 1900 – 11 November 1990) was a Greek actor and director. He first appeared on stage in his native Crete as Chorus Leader and later as Messeng ...

. This production traveled to the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...

, Covent Garden, in London in 1959, in the

Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus The Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus is a theatre in the Greek city of Epidaurus, located on the southeast end of the sanctuary dedicated to the ancient Greek God of medicine, Asclepius. It is built on the west side of Cynortion Mountain, near modern ...

in 1961 with the collaboration of the

Greek National Opera The Greek National Opera ( el, Εθνική Λυρική Σκηνή, ''Ethniki Lyriki Skini'') is the country's state lyric opera company, located in the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center at the south suburb of Athens, Kallithea. It is a ...

and to La Scala (where a few minutes of it were filmed) in 1961–62. It was in these performances that Callas made her last appearances in Italy. :The Rescigno–Minotis production was successfully revived again for

Magda Olivero Magda Olivero (née Maria Maddalena Olivero) (25 March 1910 – 8 September 2014), was an Italian operatic soprano. Her career started in 1932 when she was 22, and spanned five decades, establishing her "as an important link between the era of th ...

in Dallas (1967) and Kansas City (1968).

Late 20th-century revivals

* 1984–1995: Revivals of the original French version were given at the

Buxton Festival The Buxton Festival is an annual summer festival of opera, music and (since 2000) a literary series, held in Buxton, Derbyshire, England since its beginnings in July 1979. The 2020 festival would have run but was cancelled due to the Covid-19 cri ...

on 28 July 1984; at The Royal Opera House, Covent Garden on 6 November 1989; and at the Valle d'Itria Festival on 4 August 1995. * 1996: The shortened Vienna version was given in an English translation and sung in English by

Opera North Opera North is an English opera company based in Leeds. The company's home theatre is the Leeds Grand Theatre, but it also presents regular seasons in several other cities, at the Theatre Royal, Nottingham, the Lowry Centre, Salford Quays and ...

in Leeds in April 1996. * March 1997: A Bicentennial production by Opera Quotannis presented an unabridged (text and music) version (with a period-instrument orchestra) of the original opéra-comique at

Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in the Upper West Side neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and philanthropist whose donations assist ...

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 milli ...

, commemorating the bicentennial of the premiere. Bart Folse conducted Brian Morgan's stylized production, which featured

Phyllis Treigle Phyllis Treigle (born May 6, 1960) is a native of New Orleans, Louisiana, and is a noted American soprano, and the daughter of the bass-baritone Norman Treigle. She graduated from Loyola University of the South's College of Music and made her ...

(in the title role), Carl Halvorson (as Jason),

D'Anna Fortunato D'Anna Fortunato (born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on February 21, 1945) is an American mezzo-soprano. She has long been an admired favorite on the American orchestral-concert scene, while establishing herself as a respected operatic artist as we ...

(as Néris), David Arnold (as Créon),

Thaïs St Julien Thaïs St. Julien (June 11, 1945 – January 3, 2019) was a soprano from New Orleans. She studied under Charles Paddock, Virginia MacWatters and Norma Newton, and was Co-Director (with Milton G. Scheuermann, Jr) of the New Orleans Musica da ...

(as Dircé), and Jayne West and Andrea Matthews (as the Handmaidens of Dircé). Peter G. Davis, in '' New York'' magazine, wrote that "Opera Quotannis delivers Cherubini's ''Médée'' in all its original glory.... The occasion proved that the real ''Médée'' is indeed a masterpiece. Its weak sister, the doctored ''Medea'' we've been hearing all these years, should now be permanently set aside."

Newport Classic Newport Classic, Ltd, is a record label of classical music, founded by Larry Kraman, and is located in Newport, Rhode Island. In its catalog are recordings of both familiar and unusual works, including ''Casanova's Homecoming'', ''A Waterbird Talk ...

subsequently recorded the production for Compact Disc. The role of Médée is famed for its difficulty. Other famous interpreters of the role in the 20th century included Dame

Josephine Barstow Dame Josephine Clare Barstow, (born 27 September 1940) is an English operatic soprano. Education and early career Josephine Barstow was born in Sheffield and educated at the University of Birmingham. She made her professional debut (Mimì in ...

Montserrat Caballé Montserrat Caballé i Folch or Folc (full name: María de Montserrat Bibiana Concepción Caballé i Folch (, , ; (12 April 1933 – 6 October 2018), known simply as Montserrat Caballé, was a Catalan Spanish operatic soprano. She sang a wide v ...

Eileen Farrell Eileen Farrell (February 13, 1920 – March 23, 2002) was an American soprano who had a nearly 60-year-long career performing both classical and popular music in concerts, theatres, on radio and television, and on disc. NPR noted, "She possessed ...

Marisa Galvany Marisa Galvany (born June 19, 1936) is an American soprano who had an active international career performing in operas and concerts up into the early 2000s. Known for the great intensity of her performances, Galvany particularly excelled in port ...

Leyla Gencer Ayşe Leyla Gencer (, née Çeyrekgil; 10 October 192810 May 2008) was a Turkish operatic soprano. Gencer was a notable ''bel canto'' soprano who spent most of her career in Italy, from the early 1950s through the mid-1980s, and had a reperto ...

, Dame Gwyneth Jones,

Nadja Michael Nadja Michael (born 1969) is a German opera singer with an active international career singing leading soprano roles. Her mother's great-aunt was the soprano Erna Sack. Early life and education She was born near Leipzig in Wurzen, then East G ...

, Maralin Niska,

Leonie Rysanek Leopoldine Rysanek (14 November 1926 – 7 March 1998) was an Austrian dramatic soprano. Life Rysanek was born in Vienna and made her operatic debut in 1949 in Innsbruck. In 1951 the Bayreuth Festival reopened and the new leader Wieland Wa ...

, Sylvia Sass,

Anja Silja Anja Silja Regina Langwagen (, born 17 April 1940) is a German soprano singer. Biography Born in Berlin, Silja began her operatic career at a very early age, with her grandfather, Egon Friedrich Maria Anders van Rijn, as her voice teacher. She ...

Dunja Vejzovic Dunja ( sr-cyr, Дуња) is a Serbo-Croatian feminine given name which is in fact homonymous with the vocabulary word for " quince." It derives from the Russian pet form of the Greek name Evdokia. It is a popular name in Serbia, Croatia, and ...

, and

Shirley Verrett Shirley Verrett (May 31, 1931 – November 5, 2010) was an American operatic mezzo-soprano who successfully transitioned into soprano roles, i.e. soprano sfogato. Verrett enjoyed great fame from the late 1960s through the 1990s, particularly we ...

Anna Caterina Antonacci Anna Caterina Antonacci (born 5 April 1961) is an Italian soprano known for roles in the bel canto and Baroque repertories. She performed as a mezzo-soprano for several years, particularly performing the Rossini canon. Career Antonacci stu ...

performed the Italian version in the first decade of the 21st century: the recording of a performance from the 2008 Turin edition has been released on DVD. The opera, in its Italian version, was performed for the first time at the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

in 2022, with

Sondra Radvanovsky Sondra Dee Radvanovsky (born 11 April 1969) is an American-Canadian soprano. Specializing in 19th-century Italian opera, Radvanovsky has been called one of the leading Verdi sopranos of her generation. Her signature roles include Elvira in '' E ...

Matthew Polenzani Matthew Polenzani (born 1968) is an American lyric tenor. He has appeared with the Metropolitan Opera, Seattle Opera, Royal Opera House, Bayerische Staatsoper, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Vienna State Opera, and San Francisco Opera, among others. He ...

, Janai Brugger, Michele Pertusi, and Ekaterina Gubanova. It was featured on the

Metropolitan Opera Live in HD Metropolitan Opera Live in HD (also known as The Met: Live in HD) is a series of live opera performances transmitted in high-definition video via satellite from the Metropolitan Opera in New York City to select venues, primarily movie theaters, ...

on Saturday, October 22, 2022 and an encore showing took place on Wednesday, October 26, 2022.

Roles

Synopsis

:Place: Corinth :Time: Antiquity

Act 1

''Outside the palace of King Créon'' Dircé is preparing for her wedding to Jason. Years ago, Jason had stolen the

golden fleece In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece ( el, Χρυσόμαλλον δέρας, ''Chrysómallon déras'') is the fleece of the golden-woolled,, ''Khrusómallos''. winged ram, Chrysomallos, that rescued Phrixus and brought him to Colchis, where ...

with the help of Médée, who had betrayed her family and established a relationship with Jason, the result of which was two children. Although Jason has since abandoned Médée, she reappears and demands that he return to her. Jason refuses and Médée curses him, swearing vengeance.

Act 2

''Inside the palace'' In despair, Médée is encouraged by her slave, Néris, to leave the city. Créon then appears and orders that Médée leave. She asks for one more day with her children and, after the king agrees, she appears to be calmer and gives Néris two wedding presents to take to her rival.

Act 3

''Between the palace and the temple'' Néris brings the two children out to where Médée is waiting. Sounds of lamentation are heard from within the palace and it is discovered that one of Médée's wedding presents has poisoned Dircé. An angry crowd gathers and Néris, Médée, and the children take refuge in the temple. From the temple, the two women reappear with Médée grasping a blood-stained knife with which she has killed her two children. Médée curses Jason and disappears into the air. The temple goes up in flames and the crowd flees in terror.

Recordings

Original French version: Italian translation, with recitatives by Franz Lachner:

Influence

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

esteemed Cherubini, and owned a copy of the score of ''Médée''; themes from Beethoven's Pathétique Sonata have a strong likeness to figures and ideas in the opera.

References

Notes

External links

French libretto of Cherubini's ''Médée''

"Motherhood and Murder: Cherubini's ''Medea''" on npr.org

Tsippi Fleischer: Luigi Cherubini's ''Médée'' (1797): A Study of its Musical and Dramatic Style (including historical sources).
UMI Company Microform 9817686. Ann Arbor, MI (USA), 1998. Full PDF text available for download fro
the author's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Medee Operas by Luigi Cherubini French-language operas Opéras comiques Operas 1797 operas Operas based on the Jason-Medea myth Operas based on plays Operas based on works by Euripides Operas based on works by Pierre Corneille Works based on Medea (Euripides play)