Émile-César-Victor Perrin was a French painter, mainly known as a theatre director and impresario, born in

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...

on 9 January 1814, died 8 October 1885.Dean W. ''Bizet.'' London, JM Dent & Sons, 1978. His son-in-law was

Camille du Locle Camille du Locle (16 July 18329 October 1903) was a French theatre manager and a librettist. He was born in Orange, France. From 1862 he served as assistant to his father-in-law, Émile Perrin, at the Paris Opéra. From 1870, he was co-dire ...

Biography

Perrin studied under Gros and Delaroche, and pursued a career as a

history painter History painting is a genre in painting defined by its subject matter rather than any artistic style or specific period. History paintings depict a moment in a narrative story, most often (but not exclusively) Greek mythology, Greek and Roman my ...

, exhibiting at the

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...

. In between his appointments at the Opéra-Comique he briefly returned to painting.Walsh T J. ''Second Empire Opera: The Théâtre Lyrique Paris 1851-1870.'' John Calder, London, 1981. He was director of the

Opéra-Comique The Opéra-Comique () is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular Théâtre de la foire, theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief riva ...

from May 1848 to November 1857, then briefly in 1862, when he 'discovered' Galli-Marié singing in Rouen.Curtiss M. ''Bizet and his world.'' New York, Vienna House, 1974. From July 1854 to September 1855 he was concurrently director of the

Théâtre Lyrique The Théâtre Lyrique () was one of four opera companies performing in Paris during the middle of the 19th century (the other three being the Paris Opera, Opéra, the Opéra-Comique, and the Théâtre-Italien (1801–1878), Théâtre-Italien). ...

, and during his short tenure the artistic and social standing of the theatre rose, although he resigned, disappointed with the results at the theatre. Wagner described him around this time as "a well-to-do bel esprit and painter". He became director of the

Opéra de Paris The Paris Opera ( ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be kn ...

in December 1862. During this time he employed Bizet to play through scores submitted to the Opéra, although Perrin did not assist the composer in getting his work performed there.

Victorien Sardou Victorien Sardou ( , ; 5 September 1831 – 8 November 1908) was a French dramatist. He is best remembered today for his development, along with Eugène Scribe, of the well-made play. He also wrote several plays that were made into popular 19th-c ...

in a letter described Perrin as "the most volatile, the most capricious, the most changeable of men". He was dismissed from the Opéra after being accused of insufficient patriotism in May 1870. In 1875, he was brought in to arbitrate in a dispute between Bizet and the directors of the Opéra-Comique over the preparations for ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...

'', despite the fact that he loathed the piece. He was administrator-general of the

Comédie-Française The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...

from 1871 up to his death. In 1876 he became a member of the

Académie des beaux-arts The (; ) is a French learned society based in Paris. It is one of the five academies of the . The current president of the academy (2021) is Alain-Charles Perrot, a French architect. Background The academy was created in 1816 in Paris as a me ...

.Gourret J. ''Ces hommes qui ont fait l'Opéra''. Editions Albatros, Paris, 1984.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Perrin, Emile 1814 births 1885 deaths Businesspeople from Rouen French opera managers French impresarios 19th-century French painters French male painters French theatre managers and producers Pupils of Antoine-Jean Gros Administrators of the Comédie-Française Directors of the Paris Opera Members of the Académie des beaux-arts 19th-century painters of historical subjects 19th-century French male artists Writers from Rouen