Ba-ta-clan

Template:Offenbach operasBa-ta-clan is a "chinoiserie musicale", or operetta, in one act by Jacques Offenbach to an original French libretto by Ludovic Halévy. It was first performed at Théâtre des Bouffes Parisiens, Paris, on 29 December 1855. The operetta uses set numbers and spoken dialogue and runs about one hour.

Ba-ta-clan was Offenbach's first big success. The witty piece satirised everything from contemporary politics to grand opera conventions. It was frequently revived in Paris, London and New York for decades, and Offenbach eventually expanded it as a full-length piece with a cast of eleven. Offenbach's early operettas were small-scale one-act works, since the law in France limited musical theatre works (other than grand opera) to one-act pieces with no more than three singers and, perhaps, some mute characters.[1] In 1858, this law was changed, and Offenbach was able to offer full-length works, beginning with Orpheus in the Underworld.

Roles

Role	Voice type	Premiere Cast, December 29, 1855 (Conductor: - )
Fé-an-nich-ton	soprano	Dalmont
Ké-ki-ka-ko	tenor	Jean-François Berthelier
Ko-ko-ri-ko	baritone	Guyot
Fé-ni-han	tenor	Pradeau
First conspirator	tenor
Second conspirator	tenor

Synopsis

Two French expatriates in "Che-i-noor," a distant Chinese-speaking kingdom, become embroiled in a plot to overthrow the king. After a lot of difficulty communicating, a bit of dancing and revolutionary singing, and a little conjugation, all ends happily.

Recordings

Jacques Offenbach: Ba-Ta-Clan, Orchestre Jean-François Paillard, Chorale Philippe Caillard

• Conductor: Marcel Couraud
• Principal singers: Huguette Boulangeot (Fé-an-nich-ton), Raymond Amade (Ké-ki-ka-ko), Rémy Corazza (Fé-ni-han), René Terrasson (Ko-ko-ri-ko)
• Recording date: 1959
• Label: ERATO 063-19 989-2 (CD, with Les bavards)

Jacques Offenbach: Ba-Ta-Clan, L'ensemble instrumental de Basse-Normandie

• Conductor: Dominique Debart
• Principal singers: Maryse Castets (Fé-an-nich-ton), Vincent Vittoz (Ké-ki-ka-ko), Bernard van der Meersch (Fé-ni-han), Michel Hubert (Ko-ko-ri-ko)
• Recording date: 1986
• Label: Pluriel PL 3374 (CD)

See also

• Libretto in WikiSource
• Fisch-Ton-Kan by Emmanuel Chabrier. First performed in 1875.

External links

• Information about the operetta
• Opera-opera plot summary
• Operadis discography, accessed 11 March 2011