Alphonse Royer

Alphonse Royer, around 1840

Alphonse Royer (born September 10, 1803 in Paris , † April 11, 1875 in Paris ) was a French theater writer, librettist , impresario and journalist.

biography

Alphonse Royer was born into a wealthy family; his father was a lawyer and auctioneer. At a young age he frequented a literary circle that was shaped by romanticism and - in political orientation - by liberalism . His father sent him traveling, and Royer then spent several years in Italy and in the Ottoman Empire. He was in Constantinople in 1826, when the Janissaries were ousted and dissolved by Sultan Mahmud II . Royer was strongly influenced by the events of the time, and his experiences in Turkey inspired many of his later literary works (see below). In 1830 he traveled back to France from Constantinople via what is now Bulgaria and Romania .

On his return to Paris he published, together with Henri Auguste Barbier , the historical novel Les Mauvais Garçons (1830), which first made his name known. In the same year Royer also published his first play, the three-act act Henry V et ses compagnons , composed with Auguste Romieu (1800–1855). The piece premiered on February 27, 1830 at the Théâtre des Nouveautés , with music by Giacomo Meyerbeer , Carl Maria von Weber and Louis Spohr . The audience was generally enthusiastic, but there were also other voices: Friedrich von Raumer , who was in Paris and had seen three pieces on April 6, 1830, including Romieu-Royer's Henry V et ses compagnons  , wrote on next day:

“… Loud vaudevilles that were badly sung and, with the exception of one Mr. Philippe, were only played very mediocre. (…) The third piece is Shakspeare [!] A la française boiled down and, as a crouton à la sauce piquante , a love story that is nothing short of spicy. The first act begins with a beating and ends with a drinking scene in the tavern. The last one is of course gevaudevillt (nothing as a parody, but in all innocence and silliness) - after the first elven choir from the Oberon ! So this ethereal, thirsty, cheerfully shining, easily floating chorus is actually drawn into earthly dirt and roared off. I hardly see this theater for the second time during my stay in Paris; I prefer to read old manuscripts as long as my eyes can take it. "

Royer's career got off to a good start, however, and in the years that followed he wrote more novels and plays. He began a fruitful collaboration with the Belgian playwright Gustave Vaëz (1812–1862), who first studied law and did his doctorate at the University of Leuven , but then achieved success as a playwright. Her first major project was the translation and adaptation of Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor in 1839 , first given at the Théâtre de la Renaissance in Paris, a venue founded by Victor Hugo and Alexandre Dumas the year before. This was followed by further translations of opera libretti, but also original compositions, namely the libretti for Donizetti's La favorite (first performance on December 2, 1840) and Verdi's Jérusalem (first performance on November 26, 1847), both at the Académie Royale de musique . In later years Royer and Vaëz wrote several other dramas, comedies and librettos ( e.g. for François-Auguste Gevaert's comic opera Georgette ou Le moulin de Fontenoy , 1853).

During the 1830s and early 1840s, Royer was friends with many well-known artists and writers, notably Gérard de Nerval , Théophile Gautier, and Heinrich Heine . They lived in close proximity to one another on rue Navarin (in the 9th arrondissement ), at times even in the same apartment. Royer and Gautier often visited the Heines summer house in Montmorency ; in 1841 they seconded Heine in his pistol duel with the Frankfurt merchant Salomon Strauss.

Alphonse Royer in a caricature by Nadar (after 1850)

In 1853 Royer took over the management of the Théâtre de l'Odéon in Paris. His old friend Gustave Vaëz served as the stage director. He also followed Royer to the Paris Opera , whose director Royer became on July 1, 1856. Under Royer's aegis, the Paris Opera premiered operas by Giuseppe Verdi , Fromental Halévy , Félicien David , Prince Józef Poniatowski and Charles Gounod , as well as premieres of ballets by Ernest Reyer , Daniel Auber and Jacques Offenbach .

Royer was also involved in the so-called "Tannhäuser fiasco", namely the scandalous Paris premiere of Wagner's Tannhäuser on March 13, 1861. Royer was not very keen on getting Tannhäuser on stage at all and only an order from Napoleon III. is said to have caused Royer to take up the opera in September 1860. Royer also made himself less popular with Wagner by primarily selecting French singers for the performance and denying the composer a free ticket contingent. He had also informed Wagner that at the Paris Opera a ballet was compulsory at the beginning of the second act, because most of the influential visitors to the opera house - all in possession of season tickets - did not appear until the second act in the first place in order to attend to their favorites To see the dancers while they were still having dinner during Act I. Wagner refused to go into this, but as a compromise put a kind of ballet (“dance divertissement”) in front of the Venusberg scene. That turned out to be of little help because the aforementioned season ticket holders did not appear until Act II, had already missed Wagner's “ballet interlude” and then accompanied the opera with shouts, laughter and a shrill concert of whistles; Many Parisian journalists present are also said to have taken part. The opera was performed twice more over the next few days (March 18 and 24), but the audience reaction was equally disastrous. Wagner, who himself was present in a box, was angry beyond measure and forbade all further performances of his works in Paris during his lifetime.

After his friend Gustave Vaëz died in March 1862, Royer soon grew tired of running the Paris Opera, so that he gave it up in December 1862 and withdrew from active theater business. He devoted himself entirely to writing, and in the years that followed he made several extensive studies, notably a history of the Paris Opera House ( Histoire de l'Opéra 1875) and a six-volume history of the theater ( Histoire universelle du Théâtre , 1869–1877). He has also translated works by Alarcon , Cervantes , Tirso de Molina and Carlo Gozzi into French. After 1862 he was also appointed General Inspector of Fine Arts ( inspecteur général des beaux-arts ).

Royer died of pneumonia on April 11, 1875 in Paris and was buried on the Cimetière du Père-Lachaise .

Royer and the Orient

The Turkish Orient occupied a special place in the life and work of Royer. Royer stayed twice in the Ottoman Empire, especially in Constantinople, first between 1825 and 1830 and again in 1840 (together with the illustrator Camille Rogier, 1810-1896, who himself spent several years in Constantinople). In the early 1840s Royer frequented writers in Paris who - like Gérard de Nerval and Théophile Gautier - themselves felt a strong fascination for the Orient and who later processed their travels in Turkey in travelogues and literary works. Royer held a salon in Paris, which the French journalist and writer Xavier Eyma (1816–1876) later reported as follows:

“I arrived in Paris to start my literary career there, where I had the great Alphonse Royer as a lovable sponsor; At that time he was in the highest esteem because of his 'oriental fame' ( renownedée orientale ). The author of the Mauvais garçons and Venezia la Bella had changed his path. After a long stay in Turkey, Alphonse Royer was better informed than anyone else about the customs of the Orient (...) and had published excellent and widely read works on the Orient. His little parlor on rue Navarin was a miniature version of a divan from Constantinople. They only smoked Turkish tobacco there, in Turkish pipes, and took the tea in oriental cups that were just the size of a pigeon's egg. "

Indeed, Royer had published numerous writings relating to his stays in Turkey, including a two-volume travelogue (1837), a biography of Sultan Mahmud II and several articles on the reforms in Turkey in the Gazette des tribunaux . His literary works include the novel Robert Macaire en Orient (1840) and the collection of short stories Un Divan (1834). And in 1868 Royer wrote a foreword for Théodore de Langeac's Les aventures d'un sultan , in which he made remarks on the "oriental novel" as such and on Sirat 'Antar in particular.

His half-historical, half-novel-like description of the Janissaries and their forced dissolution in 1826, which first appeared in 1844 ( Les Janissaires ), should be of particular importance . This work popularized the historically largely inaccurate, but still widespread opinion in Turkophobic circles today, according to which the Janissaries must be seen as the protagonists of a violent policy of the Ottomans in the Balkans; In this context, the practice of so-called boy reading ( devşirme ) is in the foreground. Royer's book was (and is) very popular in Southeastern Europe and was soon translated into Greek, Romanian, Bulgarian (ex. Ivan Bogorow ) and even into Armenian.

Awards

• Award of the Legion of Honor ( L'ordre national de la Légion d'honneur ) (Chevalier de la Légion 1844, Officier de la Légion 1867)

Works

Venezia la Bella (1834), title page

Théâtre d'Alarcón (1865), title page

Novels and short stories

• 1830 (together with Auguste Barbier ): Les Mauvais garçons . 2 volumes. E. Renduel, Paris (Volume II: Textarchiv - Internet Archive )
• 1834 (together Charles Nodier , Emile Deschamps and others): L'amulette: étrennes à nos jeunes amis . Eugène Renduel, Paris ( Gallica )
• 1834: Manoël . Abel Ledoux, Paris
  • German edition in 2 volumes 1835: Manoel. Novel. Translation by Friedrich Pitt . Arnoldische Buchhandlung, Dresden / Leipzig ( Google I / II )
• 1834: Un Divan . Abel Ledoux, Paris
• 1834: Venezia la Bella . 2 volumes. Eugène Renduel, Paris (Gallica: Volume I - Volume II )
• 1835 (together with Philarète Chasles , Jules A. David, Ernest Desprez, A. de Labrière and others): Le sachet. Nouvelles, eau forte par mademoiselle Ledoux . Poulton, Paris ( Gallica )
• 1836 (together with Roger de Beauvoir): L'Auberge des trois pins . Dumont, Paris / JP Meline, Brussels ( Google )
• 1838: Le Connétable de Bourbon . 2 volumes. Become, Paris (Gallica: Volume I - Volume II )
  • Other edition 1838. 2 volumes. C. Hochhausen et Fournes, Brussels / Leipzig ( Textarchiv - Internet Archive )
  • American edition 1844: Charles the Bourbon, Lord Constable of France. A Historical Romance . Ex. Edward S. Gould. J. Winchester, New York ( archive.org )
• 1840: Mademoiselle Béata . Dumont, Paris / Hauman et C ^ie , Brussels ( Google )
• 1840: Robert Macaire en Orient . Dumont, Paris / A. Jamar, Brussels ( Text Archive - Internet Archive )
• 1844: Les Janissaires . 2 volumes. Dumont, Paris (Gallica: Volume I - Volume II )
  • Romanian translation in two volumes 1848–1850: Ienicerii traducea libra din limba Еlena . Ex. Anastasia Pakleaul. Iosef Kopainig, Bucharest (Google: Volume II )
  • Greek translation 1860: Οι Γενίτσεροι: μυθιστορικόν διήγημα του κ. Αλφόνσου Ρωγήρου; μεταφρασθέν εκ του γαλλικού. Athens: Koromela

Country and travel descriptions

• 1834 (individual sections in): Italie pittoresque. Tableau historique et descriptif de l'Italie, du Piémont, de la Sardaigne, de la Sicile, de Malte et de la Corse . Amable Costes, Paris
• 1835: "Les hommes politiques de la Belgique". In: Revue des Deux Mondes , Volume I (1835), pp. 672-714 ( Wikisource / French ). Also published as a separate print.
• 1836 (individual sections in): Italie pittoresque. Lombard-Vénitien, Vénise, Vérone, Vigence, Padoue (…) , Musées d'Italie . Amable Costes, Paris ( Google )
• 1837: Aventures de voyage, tableaux, récits et souvenirs du Levant . 2 volumes. Dumont, Paris (Gallica: Volume I - Volume II )
  • Other edition 1837 in 2 volumes: Meline, Cans et Compagnie, Brussels (Google: Volume I - Volume II )
• 1839: “L'horloge de Strasbourg. Chronique alsacienne ”. In: A.-J. Duvergier (ed.): Mémorial historique de la noblesse . Volume I. Paris 1839, pp. 55-87

Writings on the history of theater

• 1869–1878: Histoire universelle du théâtre . 6 volumes. A. Franck, Paris (I – IV) / Paul Ollendorff, Paris (V – VI)
  • Volume I (1869) ( Gallica )
  • Volume II (1869) ( Gallica )
  • Volume III (1870) ( Gallica )
  • Volume IV (1870) ( Gallica )
  • Volume V (1878, posthumously): Histoire du théâtre contemporain en France et à l'étranger, depuis 1800 jusqu'à 1875 . Volume I ( Gallica )
  • Volume VI (1878, posthumously): Histoire du théâtre contemporain en France et à l'étranger, depuis 1800 jusqu'à 1875 . Volume II ( Gallica )
• 1875: Histoire de l'opéra . Bachelin-Deflorenne, Paris

Plays and libretti

• 1830 (together with Auguste Romieu): Henri V et ses compagnons, drame en trois actes de MM. Romieu et Alph. Royer , musique de MM. Meyerber, Weber et Spohr
• 1839 (together with Jouhaud): Écorce russe, coeur français, vaudeville en 1 acte . J.-N. Barba, Paris
• 1840 (together with Gustave Vaëz): La Favorite : opéra en quatre actes ; musique de MG Donizetti . Paris Opéra (Salle Le Peletier). Printed in 1841 Marchant, Paris; New edition by JA Lelong, Brussels 1849
• 1841 (together with Gustave Vaëz): Le Voyage à Pontoise: comédie en trois actes et en prose . C. Tresse, Paris
• 1842 (together with Gustave Vaëz ): Le Bourgeois grand seigneur: comédie en trois actes, et en prose . C. Tresse, Paris (Gallica: Notice de spectacle )
• 1843 (together with Gustave Vaëz): Mademoiselle Rose . Théâtre de l'Odéon, Paris / Brussels: J.-A. Lelong ( Google )
• 1844 (together with Gustave Vaëz): La Comtesse d'Altenberg, drame en 5 actes et en prose, by MM. Alphonse Royer et Gustave Vaez . Théâtre de l'Odéon, Paris ( Gallica )
• 1846 (together with Gustave Vaëz): Robert Bruce; opéra en 3 acts, paroles de MM Alph. Royer and Gustave Vaez, musique de G. Rossini . Paris Opéra (Salle Le Peletier). Printed: Michel Lévy frères, Paris
• 1847 (together with Gustave Vaëz): Jérusalem. Opéra de Mrs Alphonse Royer and Gustave Vaez. Musique de Mr Verdi . Paris Opéra (Salle Le Peletier). Printed by JA Lelong, Brussels ( archive.org ) ( Google )
• 1850 (together with Gustave Vaëz): La Dame de trèfle, vaudeville en 1 acte. Beck, Paris ( archive.org ) ( Google )
• 1850 (together with Anicet and Charles Narrey): Le Jeu de l'amour et de la cravache, vaudeville en un acte . Arbieu, Paris ( Gallica )
• 1850 (together with Gustave Vaëz): Le Jour et la nuit . Théâtre des Variétés, Paris
• 1850 (together with Gustave Vaëz): Les Fantaisies de Milord . Théâtre des Variétés, Paris
• 1850 (together with Gustave Vaëz): Un Ami malheureux, comédie-vaudeville en 2 actes . Beck, Paris
• 1850 (together with Gustave Vaëz and Michel Delaporte): Chodruc-Duclos, ou L'homme à la longue Barbe: drame en cinq actes et huit tableaux . M. Lévy, Paris (no year) ( archive.org )
• 1852 (together with Gustave Vaëz and Charles Narrey): Déménagé d'hier . Théâtre des Variétés, Paris
• 1852 (together with Henri Monnier ): Grandeur et décadence de M. Joseph Prudhomme . Théâtre de l'Odéon, Paris
• 1853: Georgette ou Le moulin de Fontenoy (Gevaert). Théâtre Lyrique, Paris ( 0 / page / n6 / mode / 1up Textarchiv - Internet Archive )
• 1867 (together with Théodore de Langeac): Cadet la perle. Drame en cinq actes en huit tableaux . Michel Lévy frères, Paris 1867 ( gb k-i1ytespkkC / page / n2 / mode / 1up Textarchiv - Internet Archive )

Translations (libretti and plays)

• 1839 (together with Gustave Vaëz): Lucie de Lammermoor : grand opéra en deux actes et en quatre parties ; musique de M. Gaetan Donizetti . Théâtre de la Renaissance, Paris. New editions: Bernard Latte, Paris 1843; C. Tresse, Paris 1848
• 1841 (together with Gustave Vaëz ): Othello : Opéra en trois actes (Verdi). C. Tresse, Paris. Edition 1844: J.-A. Lelong, Brussels ( Google )
• 1843 (together with Gustave Vaëz): Don Pasquale (Donizetti). Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, Brussels / JA Lelong
• 1859 (together with Gustave Oppelt): Alessandro Stradella (Flotow). Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, Brussels
• 1862: Théâtre de Michel Cervantes. Traduit pour la première fois de l'espagnol en français. Michel Lévy frères, Paris ( Text Archive - Internet Archive )
• 1863: Théâtre de Tirso de Molina . Michel Lévy frères, Paris
• 1865: Théâtre d'Alarcón. Traduit pour la première fois de l'espagnol en français . Michel Lévy frères, Paris ( Gallica )
• 1865: Théâtre fiabesque de Carlo Gozzi. Traduit pour la première fois by Alphonse Royer . Michel Lévy frères, Paris ( Gallica ) ( Google )

Preface

• 1868: Théodore de Langeac: Les aventures d'un sultan; préface d'Alphonse Royer . Michel Lévy frères, Paris ( Gallica )

literature

• Georges Servières: Richard Wagner jugé en France . Librairie Illustrée, Paris 1887.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Namely Henry V et ses compagnons.
2. ^ Friedrich von Raumer: Letters from Paris and France in 1830 . tape I . FA Brockhaus, Leipzig 1831, p. 99 f .
3. ^ Servières: Richard Wagner jugé en France , pp. 65, 70 f.
4. ↑ See also Servières: Richard Wagner jugé en France , pp. 80 ff.
5. ↑ See the documents in Edwin Lindner: Richard Wagner on "Tannhäuser". Sayings of the master about his work from his letters and writings as well as other works compiled and provided with explanatory notes . Breitkopf & Härtel, Leipzig 1914, p. 377-394 .
6. ↑ Namely in so-called çubuks , "Tschibuks", long or reed pipes with an often heavily decorated mouthpiece.
7. ↑ Xavier Eyma: Causerie . In: Le Moniteur de la Mode. Journal du grand monde . No. 1 . Adolphe Goubaud, Paris 1866, p. 218–220, here p. 220 .
8. ↑ See the article Antarah ibn Shaddad in the English Wikipedia.
9. ↑ Nadezhda Aleksandrova / НАДЕЖДА АЛЕКСАНДРОВА: ОСОБЕНОСТИ НА БЪЛГАРСКАТА ПРЕВОДНА КНИЖНИНА В ОСМАНСКИЯ КОНТЕКСТ НА XIX ВЕК . In: Annual of Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski": Faculty of Slavic Studies . tape 103 . Sofia 2018, p. 154-203 .
10. ↑ Nadezhda Aleksandrowa / Надежда Александрова: Enicharite. Prepleteni istorii w osmanskija kontekst na XIX vek / Еничарите. Преплетени истории в османския контекст на XIX век . Istok-Sapad / Изток-Запад, Sofia 2018.
11. ↑ Надежда Александрова: Ориентализмът надвива ориенталистите: случаят с Алфонс Роайие, авторана "18". Retrieved November 14, 2019 . 
12. ↑ See also Boyka Ilieva / Бойка Илиева: Po sledite na edin literatures kasus: Romanăt "Enitscharite" w osmanskija XIX wek / По следите на един литературен казус: романът " Еничарите " в османския XIX век . In: Balkanistic Forum '19 . 2: Knowledge and Identity. Blagoewgrad 2019, p. 366-368 .