The three musketeers (operetta)
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| Title: | The three musketeers |
| Shape: | Revue operetta |
| Original language: | German |
| Music: | Ralph Benatzky |
| Libretto : | Rudolph Schanzer and Ernst Welisch |
| Literary source: | "The Three Musketeers" by Alexandre Dumas d. Ä. |
| Premiere: | August 31, 1929 |
| Place of premiere: | Berlin |
| Place and time of the action: | France after 1600 |
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The three musketeers is a singspiel in two acts (15 pictures) by Ralph Benatzky , which is related to the operetta as well as the revue and the musical. The composer himself described his work as a "game from romantic times with music from yesterday and today". The libretto was written by Rudolph Schanzer and Ernst Welisch and is based on motifs from the novel of the same name by Alexandre Dumas the Elder . It premiered on August 31, 1929 in the Großes Schauspielhaus in Berlin. Amongst other things worked Trude Hesterberg , La Jana , Max Hansen and Joseph Schmidt with. The play experienced a successful renaissance in 2006 at the Nordhausen Theater , in 2008 at the Rostock Volkstheater and in 2009 at the Giessen City Theater .
orchestra
Two flutes, an oboe, two clarinets, three saxophones, a bassoon, three horns, three trumpets, three trombones, a harp, a piano, percussion and strings
Stage sets
First act: Image 1 (prelude): Street in Paris; Image 2: the cardinal's room; Image 3 (first interlude): Street in front of the wall; Image 4: courtyard of a soldiers' tavern; Image 5 (second interlude): Street in front of the wall; Image 6: anteroom of the royal bedroom; Photo 7 (third interlude): Street in front of the wall; Image 8: Army camp - tent city
Second act: Photo 9: Park; Photo 10 (fourth interlude): Gypsy camp; Image 11: smugglers' port; Image 12 (fifth interlude): curtain with image of a mill; Fig. 13: Interior of a mill; Image 14 (sixth interlude): Remote street; Photo 15: Great Hall
action
"One for all - all for one" is the leitmotif of the three musketeers d'Artagnan, Porthos and Aramis. They do not fight for wealth, only for justice and honor. They particularly hate Cardinal Mazarin, who is Minister of the Interior. He is no better than his predecessor Richelieu, who also often let his bodyguard act ruthlessly against the people. The three musketeers, on the other hand, are loyal to the ruling queen.
Queen Anna has been told that d'Artagnan has violated the ban on dueling she had issued. She invites him to her throne to reprimand the sinner; but when she sees what a dashing fellow the musketeer is, she not only forgives him graciously, but also hands him a signet ring. The planned Rüffel only turns into a gentle request that he no longer duel in the future.
Queen Anna doesn't like her ministerial cardinal either. She would like to see him lose his office, but his influence is too great to be able to overthrow him by force.
The cardinal wants to involve his niece Manon, who is currently in Paris, in his intrigue. But she is not so naive as to fall for her uncle's plan. To lure d'Artagnan into a trap, the cardinal instructs his lover Leona de Castro to provoke him into a duel. Leona goes - disguised as a Junker - to the favorite tavern of the three musketeers. She scolds this and that; but the musketeers remain calm. It is only when Leona begins to insult the queen in her tirades that d'Artagnan's collar bursts. He draws his sword and goes for her. As agreed, the cardinal appears at this very moment. He wants to have the duelist arrested immediately. But when he shows the queen's signet ring, the cardinal realizes that his plan has failed.
Anyone who thought the cardinal would give in now is mistaken. He's not throwing the gun in the towel that quickly. He found a willing helper in Father Ignotus. Disguised as a beggar from St. Eustache, he tries to incite the people against the queen. After all, she was born in Spain! Therefore he assumes that it is unpopular with the people. At first everything seems to be going as planned; but with the help of the three musketeers, Queen Anna manages to calm the people down again.
To improve relations between France and her native Spain, Queen Anna plans to marry her son Louis XIV to the Infanta of Spain. It is still too early for that, because the two chosen ones are still children, but the first step - the engagement - can already be initiated. She gives d'Artagnan a document that he is to deliver to the Spanish king. The three musketeers set off together.
The Queen let in only a small circle of her plans, but that was enough for the cardinal to get wind of the matter. On his behalf, Leona has recruited a gypsy gang who are now trying to ambush the musketeers in order to steal the letter from them. Everything seems to go as planned: The attack succeeds; the letter falls into Leona's hands. But when she hands it over to the cardinal, he realizes that it is only a worthless copy. In the meantime the musketeers have succeeded in delivering the original to the rightful recipient. Nothing stands in the way of Louis XIV's engagement to the Spanish heir to the throne.
Web links
- Numerous photos from a performance at the Donauwörth open-air theater in 2007
- "The Three Musketeers" from Felix Bloch Erben
- http://www.ralph-benatzky.com (premiere reviews in the press archive)