''Polixène'' (''Polyxena'') is an opera by the French composer

Antoine Dauvergne Antoine Dauvergne (3 October 1713 – 11 February 1797) was a French composer and violinist. Dauvergne was born in Moulins, Allier. He served as master of the ''Chambre du roi'', director of the Concert Spirituel from 1762 to 1771, and direct ...

, first performed at the Académie Royale de Musique (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 ...

) on 11 January 1763. It takes the form of a ''

tragédie lyrique This is a glossary list of opera genres, giving alternative names. "Opera" is an Italian word (short for "opera in musica"); it was not at first ''commonly'' used in Italy (or in other countries) to refer to the genre of particular works. Most c ...

'' in five acts. The libretto, by Nicolas-René Joliveau, is 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 ...

and tells the story of the

Trojan Trojan or Trojans may refer to: * Of or from the ancient city of Troy * Trojan language, the language of the historical Trojans Arts and entertainment Music * ''Les Troyens'' ('The Trojans'), an opera by Berlioz, premiered part 1863, part 1890 ...

princess

Polyxena In Greek mythology, Polyxena (; Greek: ) was the youngest daughter of King Priam of Troy and his queen, Hecuba. She does not appear in Homer, but in several other classical authors, though the details of her story vary considerably. After the ...

. The opera was dedicated to Emmanuel-Félicité de Durfort de Duras.

Roles

Synopsis

The action takes place in the aftermath of the

Trojan War In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans (Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and has ...

. Pyrrhus (son of Achilles) wants to marry Polyxena, but the goddess Juno and Queen Hecuba of Troy, (Polyxena's mother) oppose him. Juno hates the Trojans and would not wish to see a marriage uniting the son of Achilles with the daughter of Hecuba. Hecuba hates Pyrrhus for slaughtering her family. Pyrrhus' friend Telephus is also a rival for Polyxena’s love and he has Hecuba's blessing. Hecuba urges him to kill Pyrrhus. However, Thetis, Pyrrhus' grandmother, manages to appease Juno. When Telephus refuses to kill Pyrrhus, Hecuba has him killed instead. Finally, Hecuba is won over and consents to the marriage of Polyxena and Pyrrhus.

Sources

*David Charlton ''Opera in the Age of Rousseau: Music, Confrontation, Realism'', Cambridge University Press, 2012. * Félix Clément and Pierre Larousse ''Dictionnaire des Opéras'', Paris, 1881. * Benoït Dratwicki, ''Antoine Dauvergne (1713—1797): une carrière tourmentée dans la France musicale des Lumières'', Editions Mardaga, 2011.

External links

''Polixène''
(complete score at the

Bibliothèque nationale de France The Bibliothèque nationale de France (, 'National Library of France'; BnF) is the national library of France, located in Paris on two main sites known respectively as ''Richelieu'' and ''François-Mitterrand''. It is the national repository ...

) {{DEFAULTSORT:Polixene Operas Tragédies en musique French-language operas 1763 operas Operas by Antoine Dauvergne