La poupée de Nuremberg
Music by Adolphe Adam · libretto by Adolphe de Leuven · premiered 1852
La poupée de Nuremberg (English: The Nuremberg Doll) is a one-act opéra comique by Adolphe Adam to a libretto by Adolphe de Leuven and Arthur de Beauplan. The story is based on E. T. A. Hoffmann’s short story Der Sandmann. The work predates other stage adaptations of Hoffmann's tale, Coppélia and The Tales of Hoffmann. It was first performed in Paris at the Théâtre Lyrique on 21 February 1852. Berlioz described it as "a whole emporium of waltzes, galops, potpourris… worthy of the Nuremberg fair." It was performed nearly one hundred times at the Théâtre Lyrique over the following 18 years.
Text from the Wikipedia article "La poupée de Nuremberg", licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
About the Composer
Adolphe Charles Adam (French: [adɔlf adɑ̃]; 24 July 1803 – 3 May 1856) was a French composer, teacher and music critic. A prolific composer for the theatre, he is best known today for his ballets Giselle (1841) and Le corsaire (1856), his operas Le postillon de Lonjumeau (1836) and Si j'étais roi (1852) and his Christmas carol "Minuit, chrétiens!" ("Midnight, Christians", 1847, known in English as "O Holy Night"). Adam was the son of a well-known composer and pianist, but his father did not wish him to pursue a musical career. Adam defied his father, and his many operas and ballets earned him a good living until he lost all his money in 1848 in a disastrous bid to open a new opera house in…
Text from the Wikipedia article "Adolphe Adam", licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Other Operas by Adolphe Adam
- Le postillon de Lonjumeau
- Le chalet (1825)
- Le toréador (1849)
- Giralda ou La nouvelle psyché (1850)