Lehár - La Veuve Joyeuse (Gérard Korsten, Veronique Gens) [2009]
NTSC 16:9 (720x480) VBR Auto Pan&Scan | Francais (LinearPCM, 2 ch); (DTS, 5 ch) | 7.43 Gb (DVD9)
Classical | Label: Virgin | Sub: English, Francais | +3% Recovery | 129 min
NTSC 16:9 (720x480) VBR Auto Pan&Scan | Francais (LinearPCM, 2 ch); (DTS, 5 ch) | 7.43 Gb (DVD9)
Classical | Label: Virgin | Sub: English, Francais | +3% Recovery | 129 min
The heroine of 'La Veuve Joyeuse' is called Missia Palmieri, but she had started off in 1905 as Hanna Glawari in Vienna, where this operetta is known as Die lustige Witwe (The Merry Widow); its French premiere followed in 1909. The story of the merry widow and her rekindled romance with dissipated diplomat Count Danilo takes place in Paris - notably chez Maxim's in the final act - and in fact has its roots in a French play, L'attache d'ambassade by Henri Meilhac. With Ludovic Halevy, Meilhac was the librettist of Carmen, a number of Offenbach's operettas and a play called Le Reveillon, which forms the basis of that other supreme Viennese operetta Die Fledermaus. Johann Strauss' waltzes and polkas were clearly an influence on Lehar, but his sumptuous and often touching score also frequently furnishes reminders that he was a contemporary of both Richard Strauss and Giacomo Puccini. This production, mounted in December 2007 at the Opera de Lyon is by the French director Macha Makeleff.
Performer:
Missia Palmieri - Véronique Gens
Le Prince Danilo - Ivan Ludlow
Nadia / Manon - Magali Léger
Baron Popoff - François Le Roux
Camille de Coutanson - Gordon Gietz
D’Estillac - David Lefort
Lérida - Alexandre Guerrero
Kromski - Jean-Philippe Marlière
Chœurs et Orchestre de l’Opéra de Lyon
Direction musicale - Gérard Korsten
Mise en scène - Macha Makeïeff
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