Gräfin Dubarry

{{italic title}}File:Karl Millöcker 1883.jpg

Gräfin Dubarry is an operetta in three acts by Carl Millöcker to a German libretto by F. Zell and Richard Genée. The story concerns Madame du Barry, the mistress of Louis XV, King of France.

Performance history

The operetta had its premiere on 31 October 1879 at the Theater an der Wien, 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 {{ill|Paul Knepler|de}}, {{ill|Ignaz Michael Welleminsky|de}} and {{ill|Hans Martin Cremer|de}}. 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.Lamb, Andrew (1992), "Millöcker, Carl" in The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, ed. Stanley Sadie (London) {{ISBN|0-333-73432-7}} 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 on 14 April 1932 with Anny Ahlers, Helen Haye and Mimi Crawford.{{Cite web|url=https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/data/gb71-thm/8/thm/8/4|title=Binnie Hale Scrapbook Volume IV|website=archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.shutterstock.com/editorial/image-editorial/anny-ahlers-and-fellow-cast-members-on-stage-in-costume-for-production-of-operetta-the-dubarry-his-majestys-theatre-2016766a|title=Anny Ahlers Fellow Cast Members on Stage Editorial Stock Photo - Stock Image|website=Shutterstock Editorial}}{{Cite book|last=Wearing|first=J. P.|authorlink=J. P. Wearing|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/22112586|title=The London Stage, 1930–1939 : A Calendar of Plays and Players|year=1990|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=0-8108-2349-7|location=Metuchen, New Jersey|oclc=22112586}}{{page needed|date=July 2020}} An EP was released by Anny Ahlers with the songs "I Give My Heart", "The Dubarry", "Beauty", "Happy Little Jeanne" and "Today".{{Cite web|url=http://www.45cat.com/record/gepo8623|title=Anny Ahlers – "I Give My Heart"|website=45cat.com}} 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 as Jeanne heading a cast which also featured Ada Reeve as Mme Sauterelle and John Le Mesurier as Comte Lamond. This production ran for just 45 performances.

Roles

class="wikitable"

|+{{sronly|Roles, voice types}}

!Role

!Voice type

!Premiere cast, 31 October 1879
Conductor: Carl Millöcker{{Almanacco|dmy=31-10-1879|match=Gräfin Dubarry}}

!Die Dubarry cast, 14 August 1931
Conductor: Theo Mackeben{{Almanacco|dmy=14-08-1931|match=Die Dubarry}}

Marie Jeanne Bécu, a milliner, later Comtesse Dubarry

|soprano

|Gitta Alpár

René Lavallery, a painter

|tenor

|Egon Brosig

Margot, a milliner

|soprano

|Edith Schollwer

Marquis de Brissac, her friend

|tenor

Comte Dubarry

|baritone

|Schnell

King Louis XV

|baritone

Duc de Choiseul, Chief Minister

|spoken

Prince Soubise

|spoken

Duc de Lazun

|spoken

Radix de St. Foix

|spoken

Baron Chamard

|spoken

Lebell

|spoken

Marschallin von Luxembourg

|spoken

Lucille

|spoken

Pierre

|spoken

Madame Labille

|spoken

Marianne Verrières

|spoken

Claude Verrières

|spoken

Abbé

|spoken

Neighbour

|spoken

colspan="4"|Attendants, companions, servants, milliners, people of Paris (chorus)

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, Albert Lieven and Walter Müller.[https://web.archive.org/web/20190722215854/https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b70f180be Die Dubarry] at the British Film Institute{{better source needed|reason=Help request: a live link can be searched for at https://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/search/expert - if available, replace the archive URL with the live link. Or if none found, remove this 'better source needed' template. | date=October 2023}}