Thérèse (opera)

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The title of this article contains the following characters: é and è. Where they are unavailable or not desired, the name may be given as Therese.

Thérèse is an opera in two acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Jules Claretie. It was first performed at the Opéra in Monte Carlo on February 7, 1907, with Lucy Arbell in the title role.

The story takes place during the French Revolution and concerns Thérèse, who is torn between duty and affection, between her husband André Thorel, a Girondist, and her lover, the nobleman Armand de Clerval. Although she had decided to follow her lover into exile, when her husband is being led to execution she shouts "Vive le roi!" (Long live the king!) amid the frenzied crowd and is dragged to her husband's side and marched to the guillotine.

Thérèse belongs to Massenet's later works that are considered outmoded for their date of composition, although the piece has spawned a number of recent revivals and recordings, most notably the 1973 recording with Huguette Tourangeau in the title role, under the baton of Massenet champion, Richard Bonynge.