Le roi de Lahore is an opera

Opera

Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...

 in five acts by Jules Massenet

Jules Massenet

Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet was a French composer best known for his operas. His compositions were very popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and he ranks as one of the greatest melodists of his era. Soon after his death, Massenet's style went out of fashion, and many of his operas...

 to a French libretto

Libretto

A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...

 by Louis Gallet

Louis Gallet

Louis Gallet was an inexhaustible French writer of operatic libretti, plays, romances, memoirs, pamphlets, and innumerable articles, who is remembered above all for his adaptations of fiction—and Scripture— to provide librettos of cantatas and opera, notably by composers Georges...

. It was first performed at the Palais Garnier

Palais Garnier

The Palais Garnier, , is an elegant 1,979-seat opera house, which was built from 1861 to 1875 for the Paris Opera. It was originally called the Salle des Capucines because of its location on the Boulevard des Capucines in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, but soon became known as the Palais Garnier...

 in Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 on 27 April 1877.

Le roi de Lahore is Massenet's third extant opera and was his first major success in Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

, spawning performances across Europe and leading to his place as one of the most popular composer

Composer

A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

s of his time.

Performance history

Within a year of the premiere the opera was performed, for instance, in Turin

Turin

Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...

, Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, Bologna

Bologna

Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...

, and Venice

Venice

Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...

. The Royal Opera House

Royal Opera House

The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...

, Covent Garden

Covent Garden

Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...

, presented it in London in 1879, and in 1906 it premiered in Monte Carlo

Monte Carlo

Monte Carlo is an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco....

.

By the time of the Metropolitan Opera

Metropolitan Opera

The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...

 premiere in 1924, however, Le roi de Lahore in particular, and Massenet's style of romantic opera in general, faded in fashion so much that it received only six performances and has never been revived there since..

Contemporary performances include a revival by the Vancouver Opera

Vancouver Opera

Vancouver Opera is the second largest performing arts organization in British Columbia and the largest opera company in western Canada.It performs in the Queen Elizabeth Theatre accompanied currently by the Vancouver Opera Orchestra, one of two specialized opera orchestras in Canada...

 in 1977 starring Joan Sutherland

Joan Sutherland

Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, OM, AC, DBE was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano noted for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s....

 and conducted by Richard Bonynge

Richard Bonynge

Richard Alan Bonynge, AO, CBE is an Australian conductor and pianist.Bonynge was born in Sydney and educated at Sydney Boys High School before studying piano at the Royal College of Music in London. He gave up his music scholarship, continuing his private piano studies, and became a coach for...

. The same production was mounted at the San Francisco Opera

San Francisco Opera

San Francisco Opera is an American opera company, based in San Francisco, California.It was founded in 1923 by Gaetano Merola and is the second largest opera company in North America...

 and subsequently recorded. A more recent revival occurred at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice

Venice

Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...

 in 2005 under the baton of Marcello Viotti

Marcello Viotti

Marcello Viotti was a Swiss classical music conductor, best known for opera.Viotti was born in Vallorbe, in the French-speaking region of Switzerland, to Italian parents. He studied cello, piano and singing at the Conservatory of Lausanne. Wolfgang Sawallisch was a mentor to Viotti and encouraged...

, a performance of which was released on CD and DVD.

Roles

Role	Voice type	Premiere Cast, 27 April 1877 (Conductor: Édouard Deldevez Edouard Deldevez Édouard Deldevez was a French violinist, conductor, composer, and music teacher. He is also known as Ernest or Ernst Deldevez. The names Edmé or Émile are occasionally substituted for Edouard.-Biography:Édouard Deldevez was born and died in Paris, France. He won many prizes as a violinist... )
Sitâ, priestess of Indra Indra ' or is the King of the demi-gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hindu mythology. He is also the God of War, Storms, and Rainfall.Indra is one of the chief deities in the Rigveda...	soprano Soprano A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...	Josephine de Reszke Josephine de Reszke Joséphine de Reszke, in Polish Józefina Reszke, was a Polish soprano. Born in Warsaw, she was the sister of the bass Edouard and the tenor Jean de Reszke, famous singers in their own rights. She began her studies with her mother and with a Mme...
Kaled, the king's servant	mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...	Jeanne Fouquet
Alim, King of Lahore Lahore Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...	tenor Tenor The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...	Marius Salomon
Scindia, Minister to Alim	baritone Baritone Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...	Jean Lassalle
Timour, high priest of Indra Indra ' or is the King of the demi-gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hindu mythology. He is also the God of War, Storms, and Rainfall.Indra is one of the chief deities in the Rigveda...	bass	Auguste Boudouresque
Indra, an Indian deity	bass	Georges-François Menu

Act 1

The citizens of Lahore gather at the temple to pray for divine protection against the Moslem invaders, and receive encouragement from Timour, the high priest. Scindia, minister of King Alim is in love with Sita, his niece, who is also a priestess at the temple. Scindia asks Timour to release Sita from her vows, and points out that she has been meeting a young man.
In Indra's sanctuary, Scindia gets Sita to admit her interest in this young stranger, but she refuses to name him; Scindia accuses her of sacrilege, and the priests demand that she sing the evening prayer to lure the young man. A secret door opens and a young man appears: it is King Alim who confesses his love and asks for Sita's hand in marriage. Timour demands that the king expiate his actions by leading his army against the Muslims. Scindia schemes to arrange an ambush and kill the king.

Act 2

At the king's encampment in the Thol desert, where Sita has followed and pitched camp near the king as she awaits his return from the fighting. The soldiers have been routed. Scindia gets them to join with him to usurp the throne. Wounded, Alim dies in Sita's arms.

Act 3

In the Paradise of Indra there are songs and dances by the apsaras. Alim’s soul arrives but he admits that he misses the presence of Sita. Indra takes pity and agrees to restore Alim to life - as the humblest of beings - for as long as Sita lives.

Act 4

Alim awakens back in Lahore at the entrance to the royal palace where the crowd is gathering for Scindia's coronation. Scindia enters, on his way to persuade Sita to marry him, but a vengeful vision blocks his path. Alim appears to the onlookers like a poor madman, but Timour say that he must be a visionary inspired by god.

Act 5

Sita has sought refuge in Indra's sanctuary having fled forced marriage with Scindia. Alim is admitted to the sanctuary by Timour and the lovers meet again. Scindia arrives and threatens them both; Sita stabs herself and at once Alim again becomes a spirit, thus foiling the designs of Scindia. Sita and Alim are united in celestial happiness.

Recordings

Year	Cast (Sitâ, Alim, Scindia)	Conductor, Opera House and Orchestra	Label
1979	Joan Sutherland Joan Sutherland Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, OM, AC, DBE was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano noted for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s.... , Luis Lima Luis Lima Luis Lima is an Argentine operatic tenor, who studied in Buenos Aires under Carlos Guichandut and in Sicily under Gina Cigna... , Sherrill Milnes Sherrill Milnes Sherrill Milnes is an American operatic baritone most famous for his Verdi roles. From 1965 until 1997 he was associated with the Metropolitan Opera....	Richard Bonynge Richard Bonynge Richard Alan Bonynge, AO, CBE is an Australian conductor and pianist.Bonynge was born in Sydney and educated at Sydney Boys High School before studying piano at the Royal College of Music in London. He gave up his music scholarship, continuing his private piano studies, and became a coach for... , National Philharmonic orchestra and chorus	Audio CD: 433 851-2 Decca Decca Records Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades.... , DDD SPARS Code SPARS is an acronym for the Society of Professional Audio Recording Services. The SPARS code is a three-letter code that appears on some Compact Disc recordings telling the consumer whether analog or digital equipment was used in producing the recording... , total timing 146 min.
2004	Ana Maria Sanchez, Giuseppe Gipali, Vladimir Stoyanov Vladimir Stoyanov Vladimir Stoyanov is an operatic baritone. He finished the Lyubomir Pipkov Music High-School in Sofia, in 1989 and the Pancho Vladigerov State Music Academy, Sofia, in 1995....	Marcello Viotti Marcello Viotti Marcello Viotti was a Swiss classical music conductor, best known for opera.Viotti was born in Vallorbe, in the French-speaking region of Switzerland, to Italian parents. He studied cello, piano and singing at the Conservatory of Lausanne. Wolfgang Sawallisch was a mentor to Viotti and encouraged... , Teatro La Fenice orchestra and chorus	Audio CD: Dynamic

External links

• Le roi de Lahore at Bob's Universe