Grand Duchess.
Wanda, a peasant girl.
Iza, maid of honor.
Olga, maid of honor.
Prince Paul, neglected suitor of the Duchess.
Gen. Boum, in command of the army.
Baron Puck, Court chamberlain.
Baron Grog, emissary.
Fritz, a recruit.
Nepomuc, aide de camp.
[Lords and court ladies, pages, soldiers, vivandières, country girls,
etc.]
The scene is laid in the imaginary Duchy of Gerolstein; time, the year
1720.
"The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein," though in some respects inferior
musically to "Orpheus," by the same composer, is altogether the most
perfect type of the opera bouffe. For the drollness of its story, the
originality of its characters as well as of its music and obstreperous
gayety, dash, and geniality mixed with occasional seriousness and grace,
this work when it first appeared was unique, though Offenbach rose to his
highest achievement when dealing with the gods and goddesses of Olympus
in his "Orpheus," which revealed his powers of musical burlesque at their
best.
The first act opens with a grand review of the army of the duchy,
commanded by the pompous General Boum, at which the Duchess is present.
In its ranks there is a recruit, known by the name of Fritz, who has
already aroused the General's jealousy by his attentions to Wanda, a
peasant girl. He continues still further to add to this jealousy when the
Duchess, attracted by his good looks, singles him out for her regard and
promotes him to the post of corporal. When she learns of his relations to
Wanda, she raises him to the rank of lieutenant, evidently to separate
him from Wanda by the new elevation. The review over, the Duchess studies
the plan of a pending campaign against a neighboring enemy. She summons
General Boum in the presence of Baron Puck, her court chamberlain, Prince
Paul, a feeble and neglected suitor of the Duchess, and Lieutenant Fritz,
who is now her special body-guard, and asks him for his plan of campaign,
which he states, much to the disgust of Fritz, who declares it to be
sheer nonsense. The Duchess then asks the latter for his plan, and is so
much pleased with it that she appoints him general and raises him to the
rank of baron, much to the discomfort and indignation of the others.
The second act opens with the return of Fritz. He has been victorious,
and at the public reception given him he tells the story of his
adventures. Subsequently at a tête-à-tête with the Duchess, she makes
open love to him; but he is so occupied with thoughts of Wanda that he is
insensible to all her advances, which puts her in a rage. Overhearing a
conspiracy between Puck, Paul, and the deposed General Boum against his
life, she joins with them, and the act closes with a wild, hilarious
dance.
In the third act Baron Grog, emissary of Prince Paul's father, appears
upon the scene to expedite the marriage of the Prince to the Duchess. He
joins the conspiracy against Fritz, and so ingratiates himself with the
Duchess that she finally consents to marry the Prince. In the mean time
she countermands the order for Fritz's assassination, and gives him
permission to marry Wanda. The conspirators, however, play a practical
joke upon Fritz by a false message summoning him to the battle-field. He
leaves at once on the wedding-night, but through the connivance of
General Boum is waylaid and badly beaten. While the betrothal of the
Duchess is being celebrated, Fritz returns in sad plight, with the sabre
which the Duchess has given him in a battered condition. She adds to his
misfortunes by depriving him of his command and bestowing it upon Baron
Grog, but learning that he has a family, she reinstates General Boum. In
the dénouement Fritz is restored to his Wanda and the Duchess marries
Prince Paul.
The music is in keeping with the drollery of the situations, and abounds
in vivacity and odd descriptiveness, defying all accepted laws and
adapting itself to the grotesquerie and extravagance of the action. The
principal numbers in the first act are the pompous "Pif, paf, pouf" song
of General Boum; the Grand Duchess' air, "Ah! I love the Military" ("Ah!
que j'aime les militaires"); the regiment song for her and Fritz, "Oh!
what a Famous Regiment" ("Ah! c'est un fameux régiment"); the couplets of
Prince Paul, "To marry a Princess" ("Pour épouser une Princesse"); and
the famous sabre song, "Lo, here the Sabre of my Sire" ("Voici, le sabre
de mon père"). The best numbers of the second act are Fritz's spirited
rondo, "All in Good Order, Colors flying" ("En très bon ordre nous
partîmes"), in which he tells the story of his victory; the romanza "Say
to him" ("Dites lui"), a delightful little song, and so refined that it
hardly seems to belong to the opera; and the conspirators' trio, "Max was
a Soldier of Fortune" ("Max était soldat de fortune"), which is
irresistible in its broad humor and queer rhythms. The musical interest
really reaches its climax in the second act. Outside of the chorus work
in the third act, there is little of interest except the Duchess' ballad,
"There lived in Times now long gone by" ("Il était un de mes aieux"), and
Fritz' song to the Duchess, "Behold here, your Highness" ("Eh bien,
Altesse, me voilà!").
La Belle Hélène.
[Opera bouffe, in three acts; text by De Meilhac and Halévy. First
produced at the Théâtre des Variétés, Paris, December 17, 1864.]