Médée (French), or Medea (Italian, German, English), is an opéra-comique by Luigi Cherubini. The libretto by François-Benoît Hoffmann (Nicolas Étienne Framéry) was based on Euripides' tragedy of the same name and Pierre Corneille's play Médée.[1]
Performances and Versions
The role of Médée is famed for its difficulty. Famous interpreters of the role in the 20th century included Maria Callas, Eileen Farrell, Dame Gwyneth Jones, Magda Olivero, Leyla Gencer, Leonie Rysanek, Anja Silja, Maralin Niska, Marisa Galvany, Montserrat Caballé, Sylvia Sass, Shirley Verrett and, in the restored original-version, Phyllis Treigle.
First Performance (Paris, 1797)
The first version of the opera was in French and premiered on 13 March 1797 in Paris, Théâtre Feydeau. At this world première, Médée met with a lukewarm reception and was not revived. The opera was first shown in Berlin on 17 April 1800.
First Italian Version (1802)
The first Italian version of the opera was premiered in Vienna, 6 November 1802.
Shortened Italian Version (1809)
Also for Vienna, Cherubini produced a version which omitted some 500 bars of music, in 1809.
Lachner's Version (Frankfurt, 1855)
The version set by Cherubini contained spoken dialogue, i.e., an opéra-comique. More than 10 years after his death, a German-language version appeared. This was based on the shortened Vienna version, but with recitatives composed by Franz Lachner replacing the spoken dialogue.
United Kingdom Premiere (1865)
Haymarket, 6 June 1865, with recitatives by Luigi Arditi.
Italian Translation of the Lachner Version (1909)
Carlo Zangarini translated the Lachner version for its Italian premiere at the Teatro alla Scala, on 30 December 1909, and starred Ester Mazzoleni. It was this hybrid version that was revived in 1953 for Callas.
Callas Revivals (1953-1962)
Perhaps the most famous 20th-century revival of the work was in Florence in 1953, with Maria Callas in the title role, conducted by Vittorio Gui and staged by Margherita Wallmann. Callas learned and performed the role within a week, to critical acclaim. The production was so successful that the Teatro alla Scala decided to open the 1953 season with this opera, with Leonard Bernstein filling in for an indisposed Victor de Sabata. Callas performed the role throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, with possibly the most famous production being in Dallas in 1958, conducted by Nicola Rescigno (with Jon Vickers as Jason) and directed by the Greek director Alexis Minotis. This production traveled to the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, in London in 1959, and to La Scala (where a few minutes of it were filmed) in 1961-62. It was in these performances that Callas made her last appearances in Italy.
Revival of the Original French Version (from 1984)
- Buxton Festival (28 July 1984)
- Covent Garden (6 November 1989)
- Valle d'Itria Festival (4 August 1995)
- Opera Quotannis, New York City (6 March 1997)
English Translation of the Vienna Version (1996)
The shortened Vienna version, sung in English, was premiered in Opera North in Leeds, in April 1996.
Bicentennial Production
In March 1997, Opera Quotannis presented an unabridged (text and music) version (with a period-instrument orchestra) of the original opéra-comique at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, commemorating the bicentennial of the premiere. Bart Folse conducted Brian Morgan's stylized production, which featured Phyllis Treigle (in the title role), Carl Halvorson (as Jason), D'Anna Fortunato (as Néris), David Arnold (as Créon), Thaïs St Julien (as Dircé), and Jayne West and Andrea Matthews (as the Handmaidens of Dircé). Peter G. Davis, in New York magazine, wrote that "Opera Quotannis delivers Cherubini's Médée in all its original glory…. The occasion proved that the real Médée is indeed a masterpiece. Its weak sister, the doctored Medea we've been hearing all these years, should now be permanently set aside." Newport Classic subsequently recorded the production for Compact Discs.
Studio Discography
Lachner Version, in Italian translation:
- Callas, Scotto, Pirazzini, Picchi, Modesti; Serafin, 1957 (Ricordi/EMI)
- Jones, Lorengar, Cossotto, Prevedi, Díaz; Gardelli, 1967 (Decca Records)
- Sass, Kalmár, Takács, Luchetti, Kováts; Gardelli, 1977 (Hungaroton)
Original French Version:
- P.Treigle, St Julien, Fortunato, Halvorson, Arnold; Folse, 1997 (Newport Classic)
