Salammbô is an opera in four acts composed by Ernest Reyer to a French libretto by Camille du Locle. It is based on the novel Salammbô by Gustave Flaubert. The opera was first performed at the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels on February 10 1890. It debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City on March 20, 1901.
Characters
- Salammbô (Soprano), Hamilcar's daughter
- Shahabarim (Tenor), High Priest of Tanit
- Narr'Havas (Basse chantante), King of Numidia
- Giscon (Bass), Carthaginian general
- Mathô (Tenor), Lybian mercenary
- Hamilcar (Baritone), Carthaginian Suffete
- Spendius (Baritone), Greek slave
- Autharite (Bass), Gaulish mercenary
- Taanach (Mezzo-soprano), Salammbo's servant
Setting
- Place: Carthage
- Time: 240 BC
Other opera adaptations
In 1863, Modest Mussorgsky also started writing text and music for an opera based on Flaubert's novel, but he never managed to complete the work. For the film score of Orson Welles' Citizen Kane, Bernard Herrmann wrote an aria for the fictional opera Salammbô performed by Kane's wife. Contemporary French composer Philippe Fénélon's Salammbô was first performed in the Opéra Bastille in 1998.
