''The Bohemian Girl'' is an Irish Romantic

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

composed by

Michael William Balfe Michael William Balfe (15 May 1808 – 20 October 1870) was an Irish composer, best remembered for his operas, especially ''The Bohemian Girl''. After a short career as a violinist, Balfe pursued an operatic singing career, while he began to co ...

with a libretto by

Alfred Bunn Alfred Bunn (April 8, 1796 in LondonDecember 20, 1860 in Boulogne-sur-Mer) was an English theatrical manager. He was married to Margaret Agnes (née Somerville) Bunn, a minor actress, in 1819. Biography Bunn was appointed stage manager of D ...

. The plot is loosely based on a

Miguel de Cervantes Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (; 29 September 1547 (assumed) – 22 April 1616 NS) was an Early Modern Spanish writer widely regarded as the greatest writer in the Spanish language and one of the world's pre-eminent novelists. He is best kno ...

' tale, ''La Gitanilla''. The best-known aria from the piece is " I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls" in which the main character, Arline, describes her vague memories of her childhood. It has been recorded by many artists, most famously by Dame Joan Sutherland, and also by the Norwegian soprano

Sissel Kyrkjebø Sissel Kyrkjebø (; born 24 June 1969), also simply known as Sissel, is a Norwegian soprano. Sissel is considered one of the world's top crossover sopranos. Her musical style ranges from pop recordings and folk songs, to classical vocals and op ...

and Irish singer

Enya Enya Patricia Brennan (; ga, Eithne Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin; born 17 May 1961), known professionally by the mononym Enya, is an Irish singer, songwriter, and musician known for modern Celtic music. She is the best-selling Irish solo arti ...

Performance history

The opera was first produced in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

at the Drury Lane Theatre on 27 November 1843. The production ran for more than 100 nights and enjoyed many revivals worldwide including:

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

(25 November 1844),

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

(1844) and

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

(1844).Loewenberg, columns 832-833. Loewenberg's listing of a production in Madrid on 9 April 1845 in an Italian translation by R. Paderni is evidently incorrect. No such performance can be traced, and D'Erme (see Sources) demonstrates that Roberto Paderni's Italian version was created for the Trieste production on 12 February 1854. Several versions in different languages were also staged during Balfe's lifetime. The German version, ''Die Zigeunerin'', premiered in

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in 1846, the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

adaptation and translation, titled ''La zingara'', was originally staged in

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into prov ...

in 1854, and finally a four-act French version, ''La Bohémienne'', was mounted in Rouen in 1862, conducted by composer Jules Massenet, then aged only 20, and with the celebrated mezzo-soprano Célestine Galli-Marié in the role of the Gypsy Queen. If ''Die Zigeunerin'' enjoyed fairly widespread circulation in the countries of German language or culture, ''La zingara'' was often revived also in English-speaking cities, such as London, Dublin, New York,

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and

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

. The very successful 1858 run of ''La zingara'' at

Her Majesty's Theatre Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who established t ...

in London, for which Balfe was rewarded with an extra cheque for fifty pounds, starred Marietta Piccolomini,

Marietta Alboni Maria Anna Marzia (called Marietta) Alboni (6 March 1826 – 23 June 1894) was a renowned Italian contralto opera singer. She is considered "one of the greatest contraltos in operatic history". Biography Alboni was born at Città di Castello, i ...

and Antonio Giuglini. The opera "remained in the repertories of British touring companies until the 1930s and was revived in 1932 at

Sadler's Wells Sadler's Wells Theatre is a performing arts venue in Clerkenwell, London, England located on Rosebery Avenue next to New River Head. The present-day theatre is the sixth on the site since 1683. It consists of two performance spaces: a 1,500-seat ...

". Since World War II, it has been staged in a production by

Dennis Arundell Dennis Drew Arundell OBE (22 July 1898 in Finchley, London – 10 December 1988 in Camden, London

at Covent Garden in 1951 with Beecham conducting and a cast consisting of

Roberta Peters Roberta Peters (May 4, 1930 – January 18, 2017) was an American coloratura soprano. One of the most prominent American singers to achieve lasting fame and success in opera, Peters is noted for her 35-year association with the Metropolitan Oper ...

, Anthony Marlowe, Jess Walters, Edith Coates,

Howell Glynne Howell Glynne (24 January 190624 November 1969Harold Rosenthal, ''Grove Music'') was an operatic bass. He was born in Britain but lived the latter years of his life in Canada, and taught singing at the University of Toronto. Biography He was born i ...

and Murray Dickie, by the Belfast Operatic Society at the 1978

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International Festival of Light Opera, in Ireland, by Castleward Opera, Strangford, in Northern Ireland in 2006 and by Opera South, Haslemere, in England in 2008.Opera South shows on operasouth.co.uk

Roles

Score cover for 'La Bohémienne' by Balfe 1869 - britishandirishworld com

Synopsis

Act 1

A Polish noble, Thaddeus, in exile in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, joins a band of

gypsies The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

. He saves Arline, the infant daughter of Count Arnheim, from being killed by a deer. The count, in gratitude, invites him to a banquet, where Thaddeus refuses to toast a statue of the Austrian Emperor, instead splashing it with wine, and escapes from his enraged host with the help of his gypsy friend Devilshoof, who kidnaps Arline.

Act 2

Twelve years have elapsed. Arline can only vaguely remember her noble upbringing. She and Thaddeus are sweethearts, but the Gypsy Queen is also in love with him. Arnheim's nephew Florestein falls in love with Arline (not recognising her), but the Queen plants a medallion stolen from Florestein on Arline. Florestein recognises the medallion and has her arrested. She is tried before the Count who recognises the scar left on her arm from the deer attack.

Act 3

Arline is at a ball in her father's castle, where she feels

nostalgic Nostalgia is a sentimentality for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations. The word ''nostalgia'' is a learned formation of a Greek compound, consisting of (''nóstos''), meaning "homecoming", a Homeric wo ...

for her Romany upbringing and for her true love. Thaddeus breaks into the castle through a window and pleads for her hand. He eventually wins the trust of the count whom he insulted twelve years ago, and the Count gives them his blessing. The Gypsy Queen stalks Thaddeus to the castle and tries to break in through the same window to kill Arline with a musket and kidnap Thaddeus. Before she can execute her plan, however, Devilshoof tries to wrest the weapon from her hands and she is accidentally killed in the scuffle.

Musical numbers

Overture (one in A major for the 1843 production, and a completely different one in C major for the 1867 Paris production conducted by Jules Pasdeloup) Act 1 :1. "Up with the Banner, and Down with the Slave" :2. "'Tis Sad to Leave Our Fatherland" :3. "In the Gypsy's Life" :4. "Is No Succour Near at Hand?" :5. "Down with the Daring Slave" :6. "What Sound Breaks on the Ear?" :7. "Follow, Follow" Act 2 :8. "Silence, Silence" :9. "Wine, Wine!" :10. "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls" :11. "The Secret of Her Birth" :12. "Happy and Light of Heart Are Those" :13. "'Tis Gone, the Past Was All a Dream" :14. "Come with the Gipsy Bride" :15. "Life Itself Is, at the Best" :16. "To the Hall!" :17. "The Heart Bow'd Down" :18. "Hold! Hold! We Cannot Give the Life We Take" Act 3 :19. "When Other Lips" (otherwise known as "Then You'll Remember Me") :20. "Through the World Wilt Thou Fly, Love" :21. "Welcome the Present" :22. "Oh, What Full Delight"

Film versions

A silent movie version was made in Britain in 1922.

Ellen Terry Dame Alice Ellen Terry, (27 February 184721 July 1928), was a leading English actress of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born into a family of actors, Terry began performing as a child, acting in Shakespeare plays in London, and tour ...

, much better known as a stage actress, made her last screen appearance as Buda the

nursemaid A nursemaid (or nursery maid) is a mostly historical term for a female domestic worker who cares for children within a large household. The term implies that she is an assistant to an older and more experienced employee, a role usually known as n ...

. Ivor Novello plays Thaddeus, Gladys Cooper plays Arline, and

C. Aubrey Smith Sir Charles Aubrey Smith (21 July 1863 – 20 December 1948) was an English Test cricketer who became a stage and film actor, acquiring a niche as the officer-and-gentleman type, as in the first sound version of ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' (1937) ...

plays Devilshoof. An early sound short subject version of the opera was filmed in Britain in 1927, starring

Pauline Johnson Emily Pauline Johnson (10 March 1861 – 7 March 1913), also known by her Mohawk stage name ''Tekahionwake'' (pronounced ''dageh-eeon-wageh'', ), was a Canadian poet, author, and performer who was popular in the late 19th and early 20th centu ...

as Arline and Herbert Langley as Thaddeus. The best-known version is undoubtedly the 1936 full-length Laurel and Hardy film, described in the opening credits as "A Comedy Version of The Bohemian Girl". The characters played by Laurel and Hardy do not appear in the stage opera, nor does Thaddeus appear in the film. ''La gitanilla'' itself has been filmed three times, but never in English.

Other references

''The Bohemian Girl'' is mentioned in the short stories "

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" and " Eveline" by

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...

which are both parts of ''

Dubliners ''Dubliners'' is a collection of fifteen short stories by James Joyce, first published in 1914. It presents a naturalistic depiction of Irish middle class life in and around Dublin in the early years of the 20th century. The stories were writ ...

''. In "Clay", the character Maria sings some lines from "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls". The aria is quoted again in Joyce's novel ''

Finnegans Wake ''Finnegans Wake'' is a novel by Irish writer James Joyce. It is well known for its experimental style and reputation as one of the most difficult works of fiction in the Western canon. It has been called "a work of fiction which combines a bod ...

''. In the P.G. Wodehouse short story ‘Without The Option’ Oliver Randolph Sipperley, mainly referred to by Bertram Wooster as ‘Sippy’, greets Wooster with the quote ‘the heart bowed down by weight of woe to weakest hope will cling.’ George Orwell recalls ‘a little poem’ he wrote in his

essay An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as formal a ...

‘Why I Write’. The poem's final verse runs: I dreamt I dwelt in marble halls, And woke to find it true ... Booth Tarkington mentions the opera, though not by name, in '' The Two Vanrevels'', and quotes a line of the aria "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls". The opera is mentioned, and the aria is referred to several times, in the novel '' Dragonwyck'', by

Anya Seton Anya Seton (January 23, 1904 – November 8, 1990), born Ann Seton, was an American author of historical fiction, or as she preferred they be called, "biographical novels". Career Seton published her first novel, ''My Theodosia'', in 1941. Seton ...

, set in 1844. The song also appears in the movie version of the book. Willa Cather has referenced the work. One of her short stories, entitled " The Bohemian Girl", incorporates quotes from some of the arias (again including "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls"). The plot of the story also has some substantial parallels to the original. The aria "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls" is sung in the film ''

The Age of Innocence ''The Age of Innocence'' is a 1920 novel by American author Edith Wharton. It was her twelfth novel, and was initially serialized in 1920 in four parts, in the magazine '' Pictorial Review''. Later that year, it was released as a book by D. App ...

''. The aria was played and sung by the character Clementina Cavendish in the 1998 film '' The Governess''. The opera is mentioned in

Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind may also refer to: Music * ''Gone with the Wind'' ...

when Melanie heads the Saturday Night Music Circle in

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Recordings

Several recordings exist of "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls"; one is included on Sutherland's compilation disc ''La Stupenda''. Sutherland's husband, conductor Richard Bonynge, recorded a complete version of ''The Bohemian Girl'' with his protégée, Nova Thomas, singing the title role. It is one of the only complete recordings of the entire opera and still in print vi
ArkivMusic
Balfe: ''The Bohemian Girl'', National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, RTÉ Philharmonic Choir * Conductor: Richard Bonynge * Principal singers: Nova Thomas (Arline), Patrick Power (Thaddeus), Jonathan Summers (Count Arnheim), Bernadette Cullen (Queen of the Gipsies), John del Carlo (Devilshoof), Timothy German (Florestein) * Recording date and location: January 1991,

National Concert Hall The National Concert Hall (NCH) (An Ceoláras Náisiúnta) is a national cultural institution, sometimes described as "the home of music in Ireland". It comprises the actual concert hall operation, which in various chambers hosts over 1,000 ...

, Dublin * Label: Argo, 433 324-2 (2 CDs)

Arthur Fiedler Arthur Fiedler (December 17, 1894 – July 10, 1979) was an American conductor known for his association with both the Boston Symphony and Boston Pops orchestras. With a combination of musicianship and showmanship, he made the Boston Pops one ...

and the

Boston Pops Orchestra The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart. Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Symp ...

recorded the opera's overture for RCA Victor in 1958 for an album titled ''Boston Tea Party''. It was released on LP in stereo, and later reissued on CD.

References

Notes Sources *
Barrett, William Alexander, ''Balfe: His Life and Work'', London, Remington, 1882Bunn, Alfred, ''The Bohemian Girl'' (original libretto). London: W.S. Johnson, 1843
on books.google.it *Burton, Nigel, ''The Bohemian Girl'', in Sadie, Stanley (ed.), ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' (Vol. 1, pp. 521–522), London: Macmillan Press, 1992. *D'Erme, Elisabetta: 'Michael William Balfe e La Zingara', ''Atti'', vol. xlii (Rovinj, 2012), pp. 397–447 (online a
Hrčak (Portal of Scientific Journals of Croatia)
accessed 31 January 2017)

Retrieved 19 August 2012 * ttps://www.imdb.com/title/tt0012958/ IMDB: Information about the 1922 film*Loewenberg, Alfred, ''Annals of Opera 1597-1940'', Cambridge: W. Heffer & Sons, 1943, 3rd edition, London: John Calder, 1978. *Walsh, Basil, ''Michael W. Balfe, A Unique Victorian Composer'', Dublin: Irish Academic Press Ltd., 2010

External links

"The Bohemian Girl"
: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project" (IMSLP)
Photos from ''The Bohemian Girl''

The libretto of the opera

Biography of Balfe with information about the opera
* Sheet music fo
"Come with the gipsy bride; Heart bowed down"
Birmingham, AL: Cawthon & McIntosh, from th
Alabama Sheet Music Collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bohemian Girl, The Operas by Michael Balfe English-language operas Operas 1843 operas Fictional representations of Romani people Works based on La gitanilla