French Opera Bouffe: Les Géorgiennes

“After long and elaborate preparation another of Offenbach’s peculiar operas, under the title of ‘Les Georgiennes,’ was produced last night at this house, before a very large assemblage. It is not, properly speaking, an opera, for there is little music in it, and all that we heard in the three acts was, as a general rule, inferior to Offenbach’s usual style. A very pretty drinking song occurs in the second act, but it is taken bodily, words and all, from ‘Galathée,’ and Mlle. Naddi sang it a few years ago at our Théâtre Français far better than any of Mr. Fisk’s vocalists can ever hope for. In the same act occurs a sort of rataplan song, which M. Gausins chanted for the benefit of his drum corps, and which has a certain sparkle and spirit, recalling some of the earlier works of the Franco-German composer. But in responding to an encore the orchestra got astray and poor Carlo Patti was on thorns for some time. The act concluded with a grand procession march, which, musically speaking, is the weakest thing we ever heard in a similar scene. In the third act there are some pretty specimens of Offenbachian choruses, and the music is the best in the opera. We have spoken thus far about the music, although as a general thing music is the least thing to be considered in the Opéra Bouffe. M. Jules Moinaux has furnished Offenbach with a sort of Black Crook libretto, in which everything known in spectacle is introduced. ‘Les Georgiennes’ will certainly become popular and have a run at the Opera House on its merits as a spectacle, but on the score of music it would not last a week. Mr. Fisk has placed it on the stage with his usual disregard of cost, and Amazons, mountaineers and Georgians are grouped together and lightly clad in the most approved spectacular style. But the hit of the opera was at the end of the first act. Here came a real, genuine, live elephant, which certainly should be accorded a solo, and a diminutive specimen of the same in the person of Little Mac, from Bryant’s. He made an immense success and was enthusiastically applauded. Aimée and Persini were the only members of the company deserving of mention, and they did everything that could be expected from opéra bouffe actresses. There are very queer expressions in the libretto, which it would be well to expunge.”

“In ‘Les Georgiennes,’ the new opera bouffe produced last night at the Grand Opera House, Offenbach has descended to the lowest depths of operatic writing. All rules and traditions of the lyric stage are disregarded. The principal parts are written for two sopranos and two tenors. The bass, the baritone and the contralto voices are disregarded. Of concerted music for the solo singers there is none to speak of. The opera is a series of choruses and dialogue, interspersed with solos and duets. The plot is rather flimsy, and the chief fun consists in having men take the character of women and vice-versa. Recurring to the music we would specify a pretty duet, Il m’aime, and a decidedly piquant drinking song for Aimée, as among the most notable numbers. Several of the choruses are also worthy of notice. Being by Offenbach, the music always has a melodious jingle which is pleasant to hear; but it does not appear to be of any higher grade than his previous productions.

The opera is magnificently mounted, the scene of the last act with a distant mountain view being especially fine. A well-trained female drum corps gives a noisy vivacity to the second act; while in the first the sedate gravity of a live elephant contrasts strikingly with the burlesque elephant personated by ‘Little Mac.’ As to the libretto, it is replete with double meanings, which happily most of the audience do not comprehend.”

“Beyond a doubt the Americans will become better acquainted with Offenbach’s music than with that of any other operatic composer. He has the field of opera bouffe now almost wholly to himself, and certainly he is more entertaining than all the rest of his class put together. He has a swift and dexterous hand and turns a song or a chorus with an admirable grace and facility. True, his music is flimsy. It waltzes, it polkas, it redawas, it gallops—in fact, capers nimbly to every dance measure that ever was conceived, and does almost everything except march sedately and decorously along. But as that is exactly what it doesn’t want to do, there certainly is no blame to be attached in the non-performance.

Offenbach seeks only to while away a pleasant hour with bright and lively strains. He makes no pretence that he is a Meyerbeer, or even a Halévy. If he amuses, his end is gained; and this he does.

The ‘Georgiennes’ is more picturesque than any opera of his that has yet been produced. The Turkish costume is always graceful, and looking at the stage of the Grand Opera House, one might almost imagine that he was getting a peep into the sacred mysteries of a Constantinople Vigier’s harem.

The incidents of this opera turn on the situations that arise from the Georgian women’s taking up arms in defense of the city of Djezani, deserted by the men. Out of this ensues of course a good deal of military music, rataplan choruses, feminine drum corps, the marching and counter-marching of Amazonian soldiery, the fair Aimée astride of a noble cream-colored charger and prancing about the stage in a way to do honor, as well as to her courage as to her horsemanship, and many other wonderful things. Among the prettiest of the scenes is the opening one, the chorus of vine dressers, in which some of the singers carry about baskets of the blue truit, while others bear pruning hooks, and still others ample amphoras, quaint earthen pitchers, supposed to be full of the precious juice.

The drollest of the choruses, and also the best constructed artistically, is that of the men who have come home from the fight, with legs, arms, and heads bandaged up under the pretense of being wounded. Their sad and doleful chant is excellently interwoven and contrasted with a chorus of sympathy from the wives and sweethearts.

While this opera is, as we have said, superior to others of this composer’s in the opportunity for spectacular display, it is not up to the quality of his best works in point of musical excellence. A few fine and fresh numbers stand prominently out, but the intermediate cues are very sketchy, and are but echoes of what he has done before. The general level of the music is not high.

The opera was excellently sung. One cannot but command the thoroughness with which the French do what they undertake. Theirs is certainly an admirable and systematic school of art. While nature may not have given them the best voices, yet they make the most of what they have, and both principals and chorus make it a point to know their parts. In consequence of the discipline, and doubtless also in great part through the efficient drill of Signor Patti, the director, everything passed off smoothly at the first representation. Mlles. Aimée and Persini sang noticeably well. The house was very full and very enthusiastic.”

The elephant that appears nightly is the property of J. M. French and is named “Sultan.”

“At the Grand Opera House ‘Les Gerogiennes’ has been performed during the past week to large houses, and may be said to have achieved success. The music grows upon the audience with each representation. In the pageant which closes the first act a live elephant is introduced, and Little Mac, of Bryant’s Minstrels, appears as a baby trick elephant. His antics were most humorous and he was liberally applauded. The real elephant, ‘Yusef,’ makes the circuit of the stage twice, bearing upon his back Mlle. Aimée, and in so doing he exercises a watchful care over the baby elephant, which he would undoubtedly fondle did not Little Mac take good care to keep out of his way as far as possible. We regard the music of the opera as more meritorious than any of Offenbach’s productions we have hitherto heard here. The female drum corps was liberally applauded, and Mlle. Aimée manages the horse she rides with a deal of skill. It is safe to say that the opera will have a run.”