''Das Dreimäderlhaus'' (''House of the Three Girls''), adapted into English-language versions as ''Blossom Time'' and ''Lilac Time'', is a Viennese
pastiche
A pastiche () is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking ...
operetta
Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the oper ...
with music by
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...
, rearranged by
Heinrich Berté (1857–1924), and a libretto by
Alfred Maria Willner and . The work gives a fictionalized account of Schubert's romantic life, and the story was adapted from the 1912 novel ''Schwammerl'' by
Rudolf Hans Bartsch (1873–1952). Originally the score was mostly Berté, with just one piece of Schubert's ("Ungeduld" from ''
Die schöne Müllerin
' (,"The Fair Maid of the Mill", Op. 25, D. 795), is a song cycle by Franz Schubert from 1823 based on 20 poems by Wilhelm Müller. It is the first of Schubert's two seminal cycles (preceding ''Winterreise'')'','' and a pinnacle of ''Lied'' r ...
''), but the producers required Berté to discard his score and create a
pasticcio
In music, a ''pasticcio'' or ''pastiche'' is an opera or other musical work composed of works by different composers who may or may not have been working together, or an adaptation or localization of an existing work that is loose, unauthorized, ...
of Schubert music.
[Clive, Peter. ''Schubert and His World: A Biographical Dictionary'', p. 14]
/ref>
The original production opened at the Raimundtheater in Vienna
Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
on 15 January 1916 and ran for over 650 performances in its original run in Austria and for hundreds more in Germany, followed by many successful revivals. It starred as Schubert and Anny Rainer as Hannerl. Schrödter was already 60 in 1916. In 1886, he had sung the part of the "Prince of Song" (i.e. Schubert) in Franz von Suppé
Franz von Suppé, born Francesco Ezechiele Ermenegildo de Suppé (18 April 181921 May 1895) was an Austrian composer of light operas and other theatre music. He came from the Kingdom of Dalmatia, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now part of Croatia). A c ...
's operetta about Schubert.[Information from exhibition and photo site]
/ref> The operetta spawned a sequel entitled ''Hannerl''.
Debuting during World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, the operetta's popularity was fueled by the public's taste for nostalgia, harnessing an old-fashioned, sentimental story and Schubert's familiar music.[Notes to Albany Records 2002 recording by Ohio Light Opera]
/ref> Schubert worked hard to become a successful opera composer but found little success in this genre of music. With ''Das Dreimäderlhaus'', ironically, his music finally became famous in a stage work.[
''Das Dreimäderlhaus'' then premiered in Paris on May 7, 1921, in a French adaptation by Hugues Delorme and Léon Abric called ''Chanson d'amour'' (''Song of Love''). The operetta was a success in France, and soon an English language adaption opened on ]Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...
as ''Blossom Time'', with a new arrangement of Schubert's music by Sigmund Romberg
Sigmund Romberg (July 29, 1887 – November 9, 1951) was a Hungarian-born American composer. He is best known for his Musical theatre, musicals and operettas, particularly ''The Student Prince'' (1924), ''The Desert Song'' (1926) and ''The New Moo ...
and an adapted libretto by Dorothy Donnelly
Dorothy Agnes Donnelly (January 28, 1876 - January 3, 1928) was an actress, playwright, librettist, producer, and director. After a decade-long acting career that included several notable roles on Broadway, she turned to writing plays, musicals ...
. This debuted at the Ambassador Theatre on September 29, 1921, where it ran for 592 performances; it was revived several times on Broadway over the next two decades. In London, the operetta was called ''Lilac Time'', with an adapted libretto by Adrian Ross
Arthur Reed Ropes (23 December 1859 – 11 September 1933), better known under the pseudonym Adrian Ross, was a prolific English writer of lyrics, contributing songs to more than sixty British musical comedies in the late 19th and early 20th ...
and music arranged by George H. Clutsam, using some of Berté's work. ''Lilac Time'' opened at the Lyric Theatre on December 22, 1922, and ran for 626 performances. Both the Broadway and West End versions toured extensively in subsequent decades and were frequently revived until the 1950s.
The operetta received productions in over 60 countries and was translated into numerous languages. By 1961, the piece was estimated to have played over 85,000 performances worldwide.[ It still receives occasional productions.][
]
Synopsis
In the spring of 1826, Schubert, a poor young composer, has quarters in an old Viennese house together with two friends. The three daughters of Christian Tschöll, the court glass maker, visit the three friends. Two of the girls are in love with Schubert's roommates, and the third, Hannerl, is chaperoning her sisters. More of Schubert's friends come to visit. The father arrives in search of his daughters. Schubert's two roommates drink with Tschöll in their courtyard, underneath a Lilac tree, and he agrees to their engagements with his daughters. Schubert takes on Hannerl as his singing pupil, and although the two fall in love, they are each too shy to reveal their feelings.
A couple of months later, the first two daughters are marrying their fiancés at Tschöll's house, and the three roommates are all guests at the wedding. Actress Giuditta Grisi, the mistress of Baron Franz Schober, one of Schubert's friends, arrives. She is jealous and believes that he must be cheating on her. She assumes that Hannerl is the other woman and warns her to stay away from her man. Schubert, still unable to tell Hannerl that he loves her, instead asks Schober to sing a song that he has written for her ("Ungeduld"). Hannerl misunderstands Grisi's warning, believing it to be about Schubert rather than Schober. She turns away from the composer and falls in love with Schober.
In the Prater the following morning, everyone assembles. Eventually, Schubert ends up alone, disappointed, but consoled by Hannerl's happiness and by his music.
English-language versions
American version: ''Blossom Time''
Five years after the Vienna opening, in 1921, the Shubert brothers
The Shubert family was responsible for the establishment of Broadway theaters in New York City's Theater District, as the hub of the theatre industry in the United States. Through the Shubert Organization, founded by brothers Lee, Sam, and Jac ...
acquired the American rights to ''Das Dreimäderlhaus'' with a view to customising the operetta for American audiences. They hired Donnelly and Romberg (their house composer) to adapt the libretto and music. The same team, three years later, adapted ''Old Heidelberg'' to make ''The Student Prince
''The Student Prince'' is an operetta in a prologue and four acts with music by Sigmund Romberg and book and lyrics by Dorothy Donnelly. It is based on Wilhelm Meyer-Förster's play ''Old Heidelberg (play), Old Heidelberg''. The piece has a scor ...
'', but in the case of ''The Student Prince'', the entire score was written by Romberg, not by another composer. The Broadway production of ''Blossom Time'' opened at the Ambassador Theatre on September 29, 1921, where it ran for 592 performances, starring Bertram Peacock and Olga Cook. It became the second longest-running Broadway musical of the 1920s and, after extensive tours, played Broadway again in 1939 and 1943. The show was staged by J. C. Huffman.
Donnelly changed the character names and several of the settings. The plot follows the basic story of the original, but many significant details are changed, well-known Schubert pieces are gratuitously inserted and historically inaccurate material familiar to Americans of the era is added. For example, in Act I, Schubert writes "Ständchen" for Count Scharntoff, who plans to give it (as his own work) to his wife, who is in love with Schober. Schubert's friends arrange for Hannerl ("Mitzi" in this version) to have singing lessons with Schubert as the cover for why the other daughters are there, when the father appears. They then get him drunk so that he agrees to the double wedding. In Act III, some of Schubert's works are about to be given in a concert, but Schubert is too ill to attend. His friends return to his lodgings after the concert just before Schubert dies, surrounded by angels, as "Ave Maria" is heard.
Musical numbers
;Act I
*Opening – Greta, Kupelweiser, Von Schwind, Vogel, Chorus
*Melody Triste – Bellabruna
*Three Little Maids – Mitzi, Fritzi, Kitzi, Chorus
*Serenade – Baron Franz Schober, Franz Schubert, Vogel, Kupelweiser, Von Schwind, Hansy
*My Springtime Thou Art – Baron Franz Schober, Franz Schubert, Vogel, Kupelweiser, Von Schwind, *Girls
*Song of Love – Franz Schubert, Mitzi
*Finale Act 1 – Ensemble
;Act II
*Moment Musicale – Franz Schubert, Hansy, Dancer
*Love Is a Riddle – Baron Franz Schober, Binder, Erkman, Mitzi, Fritzi, Kitzi, Girls
*Let Me Awake – Bellabruna, Baron Franz Schober
*Tell Me Daisy – Mitzi, Franz Schubert
*Only One Love Ever Fills the Heart – Mitzi, Baron Franz Schober
*Finale Act 2 – Mitzi, Franz Schubert, Baron Franz Schober
;Act III
*Opening – Greta
*Keep It Dark – Bellabruna, Vogel, Von Schwind, Kupelweiser
*Lonely Hearts – Mitzi, Fritzi, Kitzi, Greta, Franz Schubert
*Finale Act 3 – Ensemble
British version: ''Lilac Time''
In 1922, in England, ''Das Dreimäderlhaus'' was adapted as ''Lilac Time'' by Adrian Ross
Arthur Reed Ropes (23 December 1859 – 11 September 1933), better known under the pseudonym Adrian Ross, was a prolific English writer of lyrics, contributing songs to more than sixty British musical comedies in the late 19th and early 20th ...
with music by George H. Clutsam. Clutsam, an Australian composer, moved to London and wrote, among other things, a 1912 biography of Schubert. Later, he turned to the more profitable field of composing scores for musical comedies. Clutsam's adaptation hews more closely to Berté's original than does Romberg's. ''Lilac Time'' opened at the Lyric Theatre on December 22, 1922, and ran for 626 performances, The production was directed by Dion Boucicault
Dionysius Lardner "Dion" Boucicault (né Boursiquot; 26 December 1820 – 18 September 1890) was an Irish actor and playwright famed for his melodramas. By the later part of the 19th century, Boucicault had become known on both sides of the ...
; the musical director was Clarence Raybould
Robert Clarence Raybould (28 June 1886 – 27 March 1972) was an English conductor, pianist and composer who conducted works ranging from musical comedy and operetta, Gilbert and Sullivan to the standard classical repertoire. He also champione ...
. The cast at the London premiere was:
*Mrs Grimm – Barbara Gott
Barbara Gott (1872–1944) was a Scottish stage and film actress. In 1913, she made her West End debut in Stanley Houghton's ''Trust the People''.
Partial filmography
* ''Betta, the Gipsy'' (1918)
* '' The Romance of Lady Hamilton'' (1919) � ...
*Mrs Weber – Gladys Hirst
*Rosi – Ethel Wellesby
*Novotny – Robert Nainby
*Ferdinand Binder – Griffin Campion
*Andreas Braun – Michael Cole
*Schani – Albert Websdale
*Tili – Moya Nugent
Moya Nugent (27 March 1901 – 26 January 1954) was a British actress and singer. She made a few broadcasts and three silent films but was chiefly known as a stage performer, and was particularly associated with the works of Noël Coward, appeari ...
*Wili – Roy Wilson
*Lili – Clara Butterworth
Clara Butterworth (18 July 188830 October 1996) was an actress and light opera soprano. Born in Manchester, she was the daughter of Samuel Butterworth, a printer.Andrew Lamb. 'Phillips, Montague Fawcett' in ''The Oxford Dictionary of National Bio ...
*Johann Michael Vogl – Eric Morgan
*Moritz von Schwind – Herbert Cameron
*Kappel – John Kelly
*Baron Franz von Schober – Percy Heming
*Franz Schubert – Courtice Pounds
*Christian Viet – Edmund Gwenn
Edmund Gwenn (born Edmund John Kellaway; 26 September 1877 – 6 September 1959) was an English actor. On film, he is best remembered for his role as Kris Kringle in the Christmas film ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (1947), for which he won t ...
*Count Scharntorff – Jerrold Robertshaw
*Stingl – Ronald Pomeroy
*Mrs Viet – Florence Vie
*Sally – Queenie Young
*Signorina Fiametta Marini – Doris Clayton
::Source: '' The Era''.["Lilac Time", ''The Era'', December 28, 1922, p. 11]
The piece was revived at Daly's Theatre
Daly's Theatre was a theatre in the City of Westminster. It was located at 2 Cranbourn Street, just off Leicester Square. It opened on 27 June 1893, and was demolished in 1937.
The theatre was built for and named after the American impresa ...
(1928), the Lyric (1930), and the Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre was a Theater (structure), theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 at Southwark, close to the south bank of the Thames, by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men. It was ...
(1932). In 1933, soon after Richard Tauber
Richard Tauber (16 May 1891, Linz – 8 January 1948, London) was an Austrian lyric tenor and film actor. He performed the tenor role in numerous operas, including ''Don Giovanni'' by Mozart and Lorenzo Da Ponte.
Early life
Richard Tauber was b ...
had starred in a new production in German at the Aldwych Theatre
The Aldwych Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Aldwych in the City of Westminster, central London. It was listed Grade II on 20 July 1971. Its seating capacity is 1,200 on three levels.
History
Origins
The theatre was constructed in th ...
,["Aldwych Theatre", ''The Times'', September 23, 1933, p. 8] a new English production was mounted at the Alhambra Theatre
The Alhambra Theatre was a popular theatre and music hall located on the east side of Leicester Square, in the West End of London. It was built as the Royal Panopticon of Science and Arts, opening on 18 March 1854. It was closed after two yea ...
. The piece was revived at the London Coliseum
The London Coliseum (also known as the Coliseum Theatre) is a theatre in St Martin's Lane, City of Westminster, Westminster, built as one of London's largest and most luxurious "family" variety theatres. Opened on 24 December 1904 as the Lond ...
in 1936, the Stoll Theatre in 1942, and His Majesty's Theatre in 1949.
Musical numbers
;Act I
*Opening Number – Oh the Maytime is a Gaytime
*Just a Little Ring – Lili, Tilli and Willi
*Four Jolly Brothers – Schober, Vogl, Schwind and Kappel
*Hark, Hark! The Lark! – Schubert, Schober, Vogl, Schwind and Kappel
*Under the Lilac Bough – Schubert, Schober, Vogl, Schwind and Kappel
*The Golden Song – Lili and Schubert
;Act II
*Serenade – Schober
*Dance of Bridesmaids and Children
*Dream Enthralling – Schubert
*When Skies Are Blue – Lili, Tilli, Willi, Schober, Binder and Braun
*The Flower – Lili and Schibert
*Girls and Boys – Mrs Veit and Veit
*I Want To Carve Your Name – Finale act II
;Act III
*Strolling Through the Morning Air – Promenade Septet
*My Sweetest Song Of All – Schubert
*Maiden Try To Smile – Lili and Schober
*I Ask the Spring Blossom Laden – Finale Act III
Tauber's versions
The tenor Richard Tauber played Schubert in several productions and tours of ''Das Dreimäderlhaus'' in Europe, first at Plauen
Plauen (; ; ) is a town in Saxony, Germany with a population of around 65,000. It is Saxony's 5th most populated city after Leipzig, Dresden, Chemnitz and Zwickau, the second-largest city of the Vogtland after Gera, as well as the largest cit ...
, Germany, on 24 January 1920, and then in five performances of the original version at the Theater an der Wien
The is a historic theatre in Vienna located on the Left Wienzeile in the Mariahilf district. Completed in 1801, the theatre has hosted the premieres of many celebrated works of theatre, opera, and symphonic music. Since 2006, it has served prim ...
in October 1921 eue Freie Presse He presented a new version of it in London in 1933, sung in German but with the English title ''Lilac Time'', adapted by himself and Sylvio Mossée.[ Tauber made a film version in 1934 with Jane Baxter, and worked with Clutsam on a new version entitled ''Blossom Time'' based on the film. Clutsam included more new material in this version. It debuted on tour in the British provinces, moving to the Lyric Theatre in London on 17 March 1942.
]
Recordings
The original London cast recorded at least four double-sided 12" acoustic recordings of highlights for the Vocalian company in 1922. The songs recorded included the following:
*K-05065 – "The Golden Song" (Butterworth and Pounds); "Underneath the Lilac Bough" (Pounds, Butterworth, Heming, H. Cameron, J. Kelly and E. Morgan)
*K-05066 – "I am Singing, I Your Lover" (Heming); "The Three Little Girls" (Butterworth)
*K-05067 – "Dream Enthralling" (Pounds); "Dear Flower, Small and Wise" (Butterworth and Pounds)
*K-05068 – "I Want to Carve Your Name" (Butterworth and Heming); "When the Lilac Bloom Uncloses" (Butterworth and Heming)
The following discs were also recorded at the same time:
*K-05064 – ''Lilac Time Selections 1 & 2''. Regent Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Clarence Raybould
Robert Clarence Raybould (28 June 1886 – 27 March 1972) was an English conductor, pianist and composer who conducted works ranging from musical comedy and operetta, Gilbert and Sullivan to the standard classical repertoire. He also champione ...
of the Lyric Theatre
*X-9176 – "Dance of Bridesmaids and Children", Three Waltz Themes. Both sides by the Regent Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Raybould.
Al Goodman conducted an album of 10 selections from ''Blossom Time'' for RCA Victor
RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...
in the 1940s, which was briefly issued on LP. In 1959 June Bronhill and Thomas Round recorded ''Lilac Time'' for His Master's Voice
His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...
when they were stars of Sadler's Wells Opera
English National Opera (ENO) is a British opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with The Royal Opera. ENO's productions are sung in E ...
.[Broadway.com article about ''Lilac Time'' and Bronhill]
/ref> French Decca made a recording of the French version of the operetta (as ''Chanson d'Amour'') in 1962 conducted by Jésus Etcheverry
Jésus Etcheverry (14 November 1911 in Bordeaux – 12 January 1988 in Paris) was a French operatic conductor (music), conductor.
He began studying the violin while still very young, and played with diverse small orchestras to pay for his tuitions ...
; the cast included Aimé Doniat as Schubert, André Mallabrera as Schober, Lina Dachary
Lina Dachary was a French soprano born in 1922 and died in 1999. She was particularly noted for her prolific radio appearances in operetta. as Annette and Freda Betti as Nanette. Reader's Digest
''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...
included a selection in their album ''A Treasury of Great Operettas'', first offered for sale in 1963. Capriccio released a recording of ''Das Dreimäderlhaus'' in 1997, conducted by Alfred Walter, and"Berte: Das Dreimaderlhaus / Walter, Dewald, Pfeffer"
, ArkivMusic.com, accessed 12 October 2012 Ohio Light Opera released a recording of the opera in 2002.[ In 2005, UK label Classics for Pleasure, a branch of ]EMI
EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...
, released on CD the 1959 His Master's Voice recording of ''Lilac Time''[
]
Notes
Sources
*
*
*
References
Article discussing German, English and other versions of this piece from the Schubert Institute, with links to a synopsis and other materials
* ttp://www.guidetomusicaltheatre.com/shows_b/blossom_time.htm Information about the American version
External links
A review of Tauber's film called ''Blossom Time''
Information
about the Ohio Light Opera 2002 production
Kurt Gänzl article from the ''Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre'' (2001)
Favorable analysis of the Romberg version
Poster from French production
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dreimaderlhaus, Das
1916 musicals
1916 operas
West End musicals
Broadway musicals
Musicals based on novels
Musicals set in Vienna
Plays based on real people
Musicals by Sigmund Romberg
Cultural depictions of Franz Schubert
Arrangements of compositions by Franz Schubert
Operas set in Vienna
Works set in Vienna
Adaptations of works by Rudolf Hans Bartsch