La muette de Portici

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

La muette de Portici (The mute girl of Portici) also known as Masaniello, is a grand opera in five acts by Daniel Auber, with a libretto by Eugène Scribe and Germain Delavigne.

[edit] Performance history

It received its first performance at the Paris Opéra on 29th February 1828. Once extremely popular, it is now rarely performed.

According to tradition, it was the performance of this opera at the Théâtre de la Monnaie, Brussels on the 25 August 1830, which caused a riot that became the signal for the "Belgian Revolution" which led to Belgian independence.

[edit] Roles

• Alphonse, son of the Viceroy of Naples (tenor)
• Elvire, his fiancée (soprano)
• Masaniello, a fisherman (tenor)
• Fenella, his sister (dancer)
• Pietro, friend of Masaniello (bass)
• Borella, friend of Masaniello (bass)
• Moreno, friend of Masaniello (bass)
• Lorenzo, confidant of Alphonse (tenor)
• Selva, officer (bass)
• Lady in waiting to Elvire (soprano)

[edit] Source

Muette de Portici, La by Herbert Schneider, in 'The New Grove Dictionary of Opera', ed. Stanley Sadie (London, 1992) ISBN 0-333-73432-7