Reynaldo Hahn Ciboulette operetta to a libretto by Robert de Flers and Francis de Croisset. Directed 2013 by Michel (with assistant stage director Damien Lefevre) at the Opéra Comique in Paris. Stars Julie Fuchs (Ciboulette), Jean-François Lapointe (Duparquet), Julien Behr (Antonin), Eva Ganizate (Zénobie), Ronan Debois (Roger), Cécile Achille (Françoise), Jean-Claude Sarragosse (Monsieur Grenu), Guillemette Laurens (Madame Grenu), Patrick Kabongo Mubenga (Auguste/Victor), François Rougier (Le Patron/Le Maire), Safir Behloul (Grisard), Bernadette Lafont (Madame Pingret), Michel Fau (La Comtesse de Castiglione), and Jérôme Deschamps (Le Directeur de l’Opéra). Laurence Equilbey conducts the Orchestre Symphonique de l'Opéra de Toulon (with assistant conductor Chirstophe Grapperon) and the Accentus chorus (Chorus Master Christophe Grapperson). Set design Bernard Fau and Citronelle Dufay; costume design by David Belugou; lighting design by Joël Fabing; movement collaborator was Cécile Rousssat; make-up design by Pascale Fau; vocal coach was Nicolaï Maslenko. Directed for TV by François Roussillon. Sung in French. Released in 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
This is a new version of a discontinued title previously released by FRA. (Above see the artwork for both versions.) The Naxos version is now the only Ciboulette available new in Blu-ray.
We maybe should have excluded this as a operetta. But it is also thought to be the most popular French opéra comique of the 20th century. François Roussillon is about the most reliable name in modern fine-art videos, so we made an exception. Simon Thompson calls this in a musicweb-international.com review “essential if you are interested in opéra comique.” Look out for references to Massenet’s Manon, Debussy’s Pelléas, and Rodolfo (from La Bohème) grown up and mourning Mimì. But David J. Baker, writing in the March 2015 Opera News is more critical. He cites “prosaic” staging, the lack of dancing, and twenty minutes in front of the curtain as signs of budget stress, especially in a production that was supposed to be partly inspired by American musical comedy. And the droll French humor in this show may not be apparent from the English subtitles. H’mm. Approach with caution.
Here is an official trailer from Naxos:
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