The orphan and the murderer
The Orphan and the Murderer ( La Vallée du torrent ou L'orphelin et le meurtrier, mélodrame en 3 actes ) is a play by Frédéric Dupetit-Méré (1785-1827), which premiered on May 29, 1816 in the Parisian Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin had. It is one of the most famous melodramas of the 19th century.
The main role of the orphaned boy Victorin is mute and gave a mime actor , as was the tradition in the theaters on Boulevard du Temple , a chance to perform. Victorin was often portrayed by an actress as a trouser role.
action
The young man Victorin de Luceval lost his voice because he once had to watch his father being murdered. He developed considerable artistic talent in his foster family. The murderer happens to appear in this family as an old friend of the foster father. However, he can avoid a direct encounter with Victorin for a while. In the end, however, the two are compared to each other. Victorin is frozen. With the cry: “This is my father's murderer!” He regains the language.
effect
In the translation by Ignaz Franz Castelli and with the music by Ignaz von Seyfried , the play was performed on February 12, 1817 in the Theater an der Wien in Vienna and then for decades it was a blockbuster in the German-speaking area.
While the piece counts as entertainment literature and was rarely mentioned by writers, there is a very positive review of the work in Castelli's and Seyfried's version by Ludwig Börne , who emphasized the political aspect of melodramatic music , in which the orchestra acts as a commentary choir: " In ancient times it was the choir which presented the sensation and contemplation of the listener [...] as a free work of art [...]. With us, where the use of the choir in the tragedy would mainly remain ineffective because our monarchical public education is shuddering and we close the shops, even if only three people from the people have the same will and the same opinion and they are below to boldly speak out in the open air - with us only music can take the place of the choir [...]. "
Johann Nestroy used scenes from this work in his dramatic Quodlibet humorous express car journey through the world of theater (first performance on May 23, 1832 in the Theater an der Wien ).
literature
- Ignaz Franz Castelli: The orphan and the murderer, in: Deutsches Theater for the year 1819 , Augsburg: Jenisch and Stage 1819.
- Ludwig Börne: The orphan and the murderer, in: Ders., Gesammelte Schriften , Hamburg: Hoffmann & Campe 1862, vol. 5, no. LXII, pp. 35–37.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Ludwig Börne: The orphan and the murderer, in: Ders., Gesammelte Schriften , Hamburg: Hoffmann & Campe 1862, vol. 5, no. LXII, p. 36f.