Christian (French actor)
Encyclopedia
Life and career
After his beginnings in provincial theatres, Christian made his debut in the French capital at the Théâtre des Délassements-Comiques in April 1847. His career took off with roles in Claude le Riboteur, Polkette et Bamboche, Sur la gouttière, La Bouquetière des Innocents and in revue. He moved to the Théâtre des Folies-DramatiquesThéâtre des Folies-Dramatiques
The Théâtre des Folies-Dramatiques was a theatre in Paris in the 19th and 20th centuries. Opened first in 1832 in the site of the old Théâtre de l'Ambigu-Comique on the Boulevard du Temple, under Frédérick Lemaître it became a noted venue for the genre of mélodrame.In 1862, the theatre moved to the...
in 1849 and appeared in many plays, such as Les Filles en feu, Le Bal du sauvage, La Courte-paille, Le Festin de Balthazar, Le Postillon de Crèvecœur. From 1855 at the Théâtre des Variétés
Théâtre des Variétés
The Théâtre des Variétés is a theatre and "salle de spectacles" at 7, boulevard Montmartre, 2nd arrondissement, in Paris. It was declared a monument historique in 1975.-History:...
appearances included Furnished Apartment, Le Théâtre des Zouaves, Le Fils du Diable, L’Homme n’est pas parfait, Les Compagnons de la truelle and Les Mousquetaires du carnaval.
His first appearance for Offenbach
Jacques Offenbach
Jacques Offenbach was a Prussian-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s–1870s and his uncompleted opera The Tales of Hoffmann. He was a powerful influence on later composers of the operetta genre, particularly Johann Strauss, Jr....
was in the successful premiere of La Périchole
La Périchole
La Périchole is an opéra bouffe in three acts by Jacques Offenbach. Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy wrote the French-language libretto based on the 1829 one act play Le carrosse du Saint-Sacrement by Prosper Mérimée, which was revived on 13 March 1850 at the Théâtre-Français...
in 1868 where he played Panatellas. Christian was popular with audiences through his reputation for his ad-libbing.
He featured in other revivals such as La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein
La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein
La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein is an opéra bouffe , in three acts and four tableaux by Jacques Offenbach to an original French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy...
and La belle Hélène
La belle Hélène
La belle Hélène , opéra bouffe in three acts, is an operetta by Jacques Offenbach to an original French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy...
(Agamemnon). He also appeared in the opérettes of Hervé
Hervé
Hervé is a French given name of Breton origin. In English, it is sometimes rendered Harvey or Hervey. It already appears in Latin sources of the eighth century as Charivius. A later Latin form is Herveus. It derives from Old Breton Huiarnviu Hervé is a French given name of Breton origin. In...
such as Le mot de la fin and La veuve du Malabar. He appeared at the Théâtre de l'Odéon from 1870 to 1872 and then briefly at the Variétés before re-joining Offenbach at the Gaîté
Théâtre de la Gaîté (rue Papin)
In 1862 during Haussmann's modernization of Paris the Théâtre de la Gaîté of the boulevard du Temple was relocated to the rue Papin across from the Square des Arts et Métiers....
where he appeared in the premiere of Le Voyage dans la lune
Le voyage dans la lune (operetta)
Le voyage dans la Lune is a opéra-féerie in four acts and 23 scenes by Jacques Offenbach. Loosely based on the novel From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne, its French libretto was by Albert Vanloo, Eugène Leterrier and Arnold Mortier.It premiered on 26 October 1875 at the Théâtre de la Gaîté...
and in revised versions of Orphée aux Enfers (as Jupiter) and Geneviève de Brabant
Geneviève de Brabant
Geneviève de Brabant is an opéra bouffe, or operetta, by Jacques Offenbach, first performed in Paris in 1859. The plot is based on the medieval legend of Genevieve of Brabant....
(Golo). When the 'Théâtre-Lyrique' opened at the Gaîté after Offenbach’s departure, he even undertook the opéra comique
Opéra comique
Opéra comique is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged out of the popular opéra comiques en vaudevilles of the Fair Theatres of St Germain and St Laurent , which combined existing popular tunes with spoken sections...
repertoire, including La poupée de Nuremberg
La poupée de Nuremberg
La poupée de Nuremberg is a one-act opéra comique by Adolphe Adam to a libretto by Adolphe de Leuven and Victor Arthur Rousseau de Beauplan. The story is based on E. T. A. Hoffmann’s short story Der Sandmann...
, Giralda (Don Japhet), Les rendez-vous bourgeois
Les rendez-vous bourgeois
Les rendez-vous bourgeois is an opéra bouffon in one act by Nicolas Isouard to a French libretto by François Benoît Hoffmann, in the form of an opéra comique with spoken dialogue between the musical numbers...
and Le sourd (Doliban).
In January 1875 he was withdrawn from the revival of Les brigands
Les brigands
Les brigands is an opéra bouffe, or operetta, by Jacques Offenbach to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy....
after a complaint from a government minister to the theatre management that Christian had introduced the actor playing Gloria-Cassis in the tones of catholic liturgy.
Renowned for his constant wit, on the mirror of his dressing-room was pasted the inscription « Les raseurs sont priés de ne pas moisir ici » (Bores should not hang around here). According to Vanloo, his over-the-top performance as a sea-sick passenger in the vaudeville Coco at the Théâtre des Nouveautés
Théâtre des Nouveautés
The name Théâtre des Nouveautés has been used successively to refer to several different Parisian theatre companies and their buildings, beginning in 1827...
in June 1878 led him to pun « Que diraient mes administrés s'ils me voyaient avoir le mal de maire ? » - as he was at the time the mayor of a commune
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
near Chantilly
Chantilly
Chantilly may refer to:*Chantilly, Oise, a French city located in the Oise département in the Picardie région*Château de Chantilly, a historic château located in the town of Chantilly, France*Chantilly cream, a sweet whipped cream used in pastry...
.
The revival by Castellano of Le voyage dans la lune at the Théâtre du Châtelet
Théâtre du Châtelet
The Théâtre du Châtelet is a theatre and opera house, located in the place du Châtelet in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France.One of two theatres built on the site of a châtelet, a small castle or fortress, it was designed by Gabriel Davioud at the request of Baron Haussmann between 1860 and...
in 1877 brought him back to operetta. From 1878 Christian rejoined the Variétés where he featured in new stage works – Le Tour du Cadran, Coup de foudre, Le Voyage en Suisse, Les Variétés de Paris, Mam'zelle Nitouche
Mam'zelle Nitouche
Mam'zelle Nitouche is a vaudeville-opérette by Hervé. The libretto was by Henri Meilhac and Albert Millaud.-Performance history:It was first performed at the Théâtre des Variétés, Paris on 26 January 1883.- Roles :-Synopsis:...
(as Château-Gibus), La Cosaque, Mam'zelle Gavroche, Mes Anciennes – alongside popular revivals, L'Homme n'est pas parfait, La belle Hélène (Calchas), La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein (Boum), Le Père de la débutante, Les brigands (Pietro), La Princesse de Trébizonde (Cabriolo), and Barbe-bleue
Barbe-bleue
Barbe-bleue is an opéra bouffe, or operetta, in three acts by Jacques Offenbach to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy based on Charles Perrault's 1697 story.-Performance history:...
(Popolani).
Christian suffered a stroke at the Variétés on 20 November 1889 after a dress rehearsal for the revue Paris-Exposition and died shortly afterwards. His last words were apparently « I am dying just like Molière
Molière
Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, known by his stage name Molière, was a French playwright and actor who is considered to be one of the greatest masters of comedy in Western literature...
».