Happiness, abuse and return
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| Title: | Happiness, abuse and return |
| Original title: | Happiness, Abuse and Return or The Secret of the Gray House |
| Genus: | Posse with singing in five acts |
| Original language: | German |
| Author: | Johann Nestroy |
| Literary source: | “La maison blanche” , a novel by Paul de Kock |
| Music: | Adolf Müller senior |
| Publishing year: | 1838 |
| Premiere: | March 10, 1838 |
| Place of premiere: | Theater an der Wien |
| Place and time of the action: | The 1 th and the 5 th Act play in the residence, the 2 th , 3 th and 4 th in an area of the Giant. - The interval from one act to the other is always canceled by a month |
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Luck, Abuse and Return or The Secret of the Gray House is a farce with singing in five acts by Johann Nestroy . The play was written in 1838 and premiered on March 10th of this year in the Theater an der Wien as a “benefit evening” for Nestroy's partner Marie Weiler .
content
The rich former schoolmates of the poor scribe Blasius Rohr invite him to an elegant ball in order to make him look ridiculous. The stupid, proud Blasius does not notice any of this, believes that he has made true friends and feels accepted by high society:
- "One seems to find a taste in the way I interact, I will soon be an intimate friend from home." (Actus 1, Scene 9)
During Blasius' absence, the wealthy Herr Eisenkorn, his uncle, deposited the deed of donation for a valuable factory, on the assumption that the nephew, who had been deliberately kept in poverty, would manage it successfully. When Blasius found out about this, however, he immediately decided to sell the factory and buy a manor. He is leaving his previous lover Babett, whom he calls "Wawi", because she is no longer befitting him as a Marchandmod as "lord of the castle".
On the way to his castle, Blasius and his companions get to know the mysterious Friederike, who lives near the notorious "Gray House". Theodor immediately falls in love with her and proposes to her. Although she reciprocates his feelings, Friederike refuses to leave the forest area and move into the residence with him. The calculating Aurora, daughter of the bankrupt Herr von Klippenbach, beguiles Blasius, who therefore squanders his entire fortune on her and her father. Friederike is Eisenkorn's daughter, who lets her grow up in the loneliness of the forest - also an experiment in upbringing - but carefully educates her and intends to be the bride for his nephew Blasius. While the friends explore the secret of the "gray house", Eisenkorn's secret quarters, and Theodor believes a rival lives there - which is why he leaves disappointed - the castle burns down due to an explosion. Aurora and her father leave the now penniless Blasius immediately, not without taking his carriage with them.
- Blasius: "The castle is gone, d'Braut is gone!"
- Rochus: "Everything is gone!" (Actus 4, Scene 13)
Blasius lives impoverished again in the residence, only supported by his former servant Rochus. At the planned engagement party in his uncle's house, everyone meets again, Eisenkorn recognizes his nephew as a dissolute person and indignantly orders Friederike to marry Theodor immediately - which of course fills the two with great joy. The good Babett overwrites a considerable amount of capital to Eisenkorn and gives her the freedom to forgive Blasius. As this generously agrees, Blasius gets his "Wawi" back.
- "Look, I'm no good for anything, I've already seen that as a musician, and I want to stay that way." (Actus 5, Scene 14)
Factory history
The model for Nestroy's piece was the novel "La maison blanche" by Paul de Kock . Here the fate of the Parisian petty bourgeois Monsieur Robineau is described, who becomes cocky because of an inheritance, leaves his lover and strives for a title of nobility until he is finally impoverished again and is even worse off than before. The main character is described by de Kock as a young, well-fed man with a puffed up face, a blunt nose, a low forehead, thick lips and thick blond hair - this is exactly how Nestroy had the make-up artist prepare him.
Nestroy's piece has a more conciliatory ending than the novel, because the arrogant, pompous and simple-minded Blasius Rohr is brought to insight at the end through self-inflicted misfortune and, according to the taste of the Viennese audience, continues his life as a funny musician. Blasius' surname Rohr was probably chosen by Nestroy because of its lack of firmness of character after the saying “ swaying like a pipe in the wind ” .
The piece became one of Nestroy's most frequently performed works, and Blasius Rohr one of his best-known roles, which he was also happy to perform on guest tours.
Johann Nestroy played Blasius Rohr, Wenzel Scholz the servant Rochus, Ignaz Stahl the Herr von Klippenbach, Friedrich Hopp the Brother Mucki, Alois Grois the caretaker, Franz Gämmerler the Theodor, Eleonore Condorussi the Friederike and Marie Weiler the Brigitte. Director Carl Carl had to step in for the ailing actor Würth at the last moment and had great success as an iron grain. This prompted him to inform the audience on the evening of the premiere after the performance that from now on he would be on stage more often in order to “ enrich the fabric of his institute” . Therefore Nestroy wrote his next play , " The Leprechaun " a popular Carls " Staberliaden ".
Two undated original manuscripts from the fund of the Theater an der Wien have been preserved, they have the theater archive number 60. The original score by Adolf Müller has also been preserved.
Contemporary reception
Audiences and critics were enthusiastic about Nestroy's play, the Vienna theater newspaper Adolf Bäuerles welcomed it on March 12, 1838 as “a play in the popular genre of decided value” ; The Wanderer wrote about the second performance on March 14th:
- “On March 11th, Nestroy's successful comedy 'Luck, Abuse and Return' was repeated in an overcrowded house. The applause rose from act to act and the performance was even more rounded than on the first evening. "
The other magazines also almost exclusively found words of approval or praise for the work; in the humorist of March 14th read:
- "One could put a dozen local pieces with amusement and amusement on display from a single act of this Nestroyian farce, and the act would still have more of Jokos property than a chocolate of novelties."
Later interpretations
Fritz Brukner / Otto Rommel state that the implementation of the Parisian flair in the more cozy Viennese atmosphere would have been only imperfectly achieved by Nestroy, but achieved with a few characters. The motif of the eerie “white house” (in Nestroy's “gray house”) is shown in the original in a more exciting and mysterious way. Nestroy had simply replaced the associated adventure story with the kidnapping and capture of a girl with the motif of a strict father with foolish educational methods, which he loved.
When Helmut Ahrens also says that the transfer was not entirely successful, especially because the megalomania of the Paris citizen with the pursuit of nobility and castles the Vienna alien would be the better for comfort and well-being of striving. But in the figure of Blasius Rohr (in the original Robineau) the transformation from the “arrogant chancellery” (quote) into a blasé local figure was so successful that the viewers “roar and slap their thighs with laughter” (quote).
text
- Johann Nestroy: Happiness, Abuse and Return , on nestroy.at/nestroy-stuecke/36 (accessed on February 24, 2014)
literature
- Helmut Ahrens: I'm not auctioning myself off to the laurel. Johann Nestroy, his life. Societäts-Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1982, ISBN 3-7973-0389-0 ; Pp. 198-200.
- Fritz Brukner / Otto Rommel: Johann Nestroy, Complete Works. Historical-critical complete edition, sixth volume, published by Anton Schroll & Co., Vienna 1926; Pp. 379-488 (text).
- Fritz Brukner / Otto Rommel: Johann Nestroy, Complete Works. Historical-critical complete edition, eighth volume, published by Anton Schroll & Co., Vienna 1926; Pp. 226-254 (Notes).
- Otto Rommel: Johann Nestroy, Collected Works. Historical-critical complete edition, third volume, Verlag von Anton Schroll & Co., Vienna 1948–1949, new edition 1962; Pp. 157-246, 706-708, 721-723.
- W. Edgar Yates (Ed.): Johann Nestroy; Pieces 14. In: Jürgen Hein / Johann Hüttner : Johann Nestroy, Complete Works, Historical-Critical Edition. Jugend und Volk, Vienna / Munich 1982, ISBN 3-7141-6966-0 ; Pp. 1-89, 153-236.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Partikulier = in the 19th century a private individual living without a job or office who had sufficient income from his property
- ↑ Mandolettikrämerin , Viennese for almond cake seller - from Italian mandolatore = almond cake
- ^ W. Edgar Yates: Johann Nestroy; Pieces 14. S. 17.
- ↑ Babett, also Babette (French diminutive of Barbara), becomes Waberl, Wawerl or Wawi in Viennese - see operetta “Die Schmauswaberl” by Josef Hellmesberger junior
- ^ Marchandmod , Viennese for French. marchand des modes = fashion shop, here cleaning woman
- ↑ Allusion to the song of Augustine love
- ^ W. Edgar Yates: Johann Nestroy; Pieces 14. P. 73.
- ^ W. Edgar Yates: Johann Nestroy; Pieces 14. S. 88.
- ↑ Content in Brukner / Rommel: Johann Nestroy, Complete Works. 8th Volume, pp. 233-243.
- ↑ Helmut Ahrens: I am not auctioning myself off to the laurel. P. 199.
- ^ Bohemia, an entertainment journal. Article of June 9, 1840: Art and Life in Bohemia. (accessed on February 24, 2014)
- ^ Rommel: Johann Nestroy, Collected Works. , Pp. 158-159.
- ↑ Manuscript collection of the Austrian National Library
- ↑ Music collection of the Vienna Library in the City Hall , call number MH 720.
- ^ W. Edgar Yates: Johann Nestroy; Pieces 14. p. 166.
- ↑ Der Humorist, magazine for jokes and seriousness, art, theater, sociability and custom , editor Moritz Gottlieb Saphir from 1837 to 1862.
- ↑ jokos , from Jokus = prank , joke
- ^ W. Edgar Yates: Johann Nestroy; Pieces 14. p. 172.
- ^ Brukner / Rommel: Johann Nestroy, Complete Works. 8th Volume, pp. 241-243.
- ↑ Helmut Ahrens: I am not auctioning myself off to the laurel. P. 199.