''Gräfin Dubarry'' is an

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 ...

in three acts by

Carl Millöcker Carl (or Karl) Joseph Millöcker ( – ), was an Austrian composer of operettas and a conductor. __NOTOC__ He was born in Vienna, where he studied the flute at the Vienna Conservatory. While holding various conducting posts in the city, he ...

to a German

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) 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 th ...

by F. Zell and Richard Genée. The story concerns

Madame du Barry Jeanne Bécu, comtesse du Barry (; 28 August 1744 – 8 December 1793) was the last ''maîtresse-en-titre'' of King Louis XV of France. She was executed by guillotine during the French Revolution on accusations of treason—particularly being ...

, the mistress of

Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...

, King of France.

Performance history

The operetta had its premiere on 31 October

1879 Events January * January 1 ** The Specie Resumption Act takes effect. The United States Note is valued the same as gold, for the first time since the American Civil War. ** Brahms' Violin Concerto is premiered in Leipzig with Joseph Joachim ...

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 ...

, Vienna.

''Die Dubarry''

A radically new version of the work, in nine scenes under the title ''Die Dubarry'', was prepared by Theo Mackeben with music from the original ''Gräfin Dubarry'' as well as other works, and a new text was written by , and . This was first given at the Admiralspalast in Berlin on 14 August 1931. According to Andrew Lamb, the production introduced "alien structures and orchestration" compared with the original. This was filmed as '' The Loves of Madame Dubarry'' in 1935, and as ''The Dubarry'' toured the UK in 1932 starring Binnie Hale and opened at

Her Majesty's Theatre His Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated in the Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The building, designed by Charles J. Phipps, was constructed in 1897 for the actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who ...

on 14 April 1932 with Anny Ahlers,

Helen Haye Helen Haye (born Helen Hay, 28 August 1874 – 1 September 1957) was a British stage and film actress.
New York Times. 3 Septem ...

and Mimi Crawford. An EP was released by Anny Ahlers with the songs " I Give My Heart", "The Dubarry", "Beauty", "Happy Little Jeanne" and "Today". An adaptation arranged by Theo Mackeben with additional numbers by Alan Melville and Charles Zwar opened at the Princes Theatre in London on 8 October 1947, starring

Irene Manning Irene Manning (born Inez Harvuot, July 17, 1912 – May 28, 2004) was an American actress and singer. Biography Manning was born as Inez Harvuot on July 17, 1912 in Cincinnati, Ohio, one of five siblings. Both of her parents were singers. Her fa ...

as Jeanne heading a cast which also featured Ada Reeve as Mme Sauterelle and

John Le Mesurier John Le Mesurier (, born John Elton Le Mesurier Halliley; 5 April 191215 November 1983) was an English actor. He is probably best remembered for his comedic role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the BBC television situation com ...

as Comte Lamond. This production ran for just 45 performances.

Roles

Synopsis

The story is set in Paris and Versailles in 1764.

Film versions

After the 1935 British film '' The Loves of Madame Dubarry'', a German film version '' The Dubarry'' was made in Germany in 1951 by Georg Wildhagen, with Sári Barabás, Mathieu Ahlersmeyer,

Willy Fritsch Willy Fritsch (Wilhelm Egon Fritz, 27 January 1901 – 13 July 1973) was a German theatre and film actor, a popular leading man and character actor from the silent-film era to the early 1960s. Biography Early life He was born Wilhelm Egon Fritz ...

Albert Lieven Albert Lieven (born Albert Fritz Liévin; 22 June 1906 – 22 December 1971) was a German actor. Early life Lieven was born in Olsztynek, Hohenstein, German Empire. His father was the head physician of the Tuberculosis sanatorium Hohenstein, ...

and Walter Müller.''Die Dubarry''
at the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Grafin Dubarry Operas by Carl Millöcker German-language operettas Operas Operas set in France 1879 operas Operas adapted into films Cultural depictions of Louis XV Cultural depictions of Madame du Barry