Les mousquetaires au couvent

Les mousquetaires au couvent (The Musketeers at the Convent) is an operetta in three acts, music by Louis Varney, on a libretto by Jules Prével and Paul Ferrier, after a vaudeville by St-Hilaire and Dupont from 1835 entitled L'habit ne fait pas le moine, created in Paris, at the Bouffes-Parisiens, on March 16, 1880. It is Varney's most successful work, and the only one to have maintained a place in the French repertoire.

Synopsis

The action takes place in Touraine, under the reign of King Louis XIII of France. To serve the politics of the Cardinal de Richelieu, the nieces of the Governor of Touraine, Marie and Louise, wards at the convent of the Ursulines in Vouvray must become nuns. However Marie is in love, and is loved by Gontran, a Musketeer of the King. Helped by his friend Brissac and L'Abbé Bridaine, and after multiple adventures, the two lovers are united.

Main characters

• Brissac - baritone
• Gontran - tenor
• Bridaine - bass
• Marie - soprano
• Louise - soprano

Performance history

Since 1945, the operetta has had a few major productions in France, notably at the Gaieté-Lyrique, in 1952 and 1957. There were also presentations in 1968 at the Porte Saint Martin Festival, and at the Opéra-Comique in 1992, with Gabriel Bacquier. The latest major production seems to have been in Nice in 2001.

Selected discography

• Les mousquetaires au couvent - Michel Trempont (Brissac), Charles Burles (Gontran), Jules Bastin (Bridaine), Mady Mesplé (Marie), Christiane Chateau (Louise) - Choeurs et Orchestre de la RTBF, Edgard Doneux (conductor) - EMI Classics (1979).

Sources

• The Complete Dictionary of Opera and Operetta, James Anderson, (Wings Books, 1993) ISBN 0-517-09156-9

External link

Les mousquetaires au couvent