L'Adorable Belboul

L'Adorable Belboul

Nouvel Opéra Métropolitain

June 6, 2023 at 7:30 p.m.

Montréal

Duration: 1 h 15 min

Pre-concert talk: 7 p.m. (in French)

Salle Claude-Champagne

220 Vincent D’Indy Ave.

Outremont

Composed by Jules Massenet and his librettists, this short operetta draws on the codes of vaudeville and the archetypal characters of late 19th century French farces. It can be categorized as an oriental, satirical comedy in the Italian style. As dictated by lyrical tradition, the music underscores the sentimental and romantic register of the story, thereby exposing the fragility of the characters, and ultimately, putting to best advantage the composer’s talents as a melodist and his love of words. Its musical characteristics enhance the playful and irreverent nature of its convoluted story, while putting moral and social values into question. Directed by François Racine and conducted by Michel-Alexandre Broekaert, L’Adorable Belboul promises to delight.

CULTURAL MEDIATION

The shuttles available for this event are provided courtesy of Tesla.

NOM 2023

 

L’Adorable Belboul

Expanded concert version for choir, soloists and orchestra

One-act operetta in a version for stage

Pre-concert talk: Jean-Christophe Branger

 

Music: Jules Massenet

Libretto: Louis Gallet and Paul Poirson

Stage direction: François Racine

Musical direction and pianist: Michel-Alexandre Broekaert

Pianist: Boran Zaza

Clarinet: Gwénaëlle Ratouit

Trombone: Bruno Laurence Joyal

Costumes: Collège LaSalle

Sets: Lumifest en cavale, Dominique Arcand

Matthieu Thoër, digital artist 

Illustrations: Maxime Bigras

Cast

 

ZAÏ-ZA (Ali-Bazar's pupil): Pauline Sabatier (mezzo)

FATIME (Zaï-Za’s servant): Myriam Leblanc (soprano)

ALI-BAZAR (Merchant): Geoffroy Salvas (baritone) 

SIDI-TOUPI (Whirling dervish): Antonio Figueroa (comic tenor) 

HASSAN (In love with Zaï-Za): Florence Bourget (mezzo)

Pre-concert talk: 7 p.m. (in French)

A question period will follow the talk.


L'Adorable Belboul: Massenet’s forgotten operetta

 

This talk presents the musical and literary origins and characteristics of L'Adorable Belboul, a one-act operetta by Jules Massenet (1842-1912), whose manuscript was recently acquired by the Bibliothèque nationale de France, after thought lost or destroyed for over a century. Composed for a small instrumental ensemble and five soloists, L'Adorable Belboul has never been published until now, as its subject matter and form belong to a genre that was very popular in the 19th century—the ‘opera de salon’ or chamber opera—often performed in a private setting using the device of parody to present its subjects. Set in the Middle Eastern city of Samarkand, this operetta has an exotic flavour that evokes colonial France’s penchant for exoticism at the time.


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