Michel René Thibaut, known by his stage-name Daubray, born Nantes 7 May 1837, died Paris 10 September 1892 was a leading French actor and singer in operetta, active mainly in Paris but who also appeared around Europe.

Life and career

Moving to Paris when he was 14, Daubray undertook classes in speech production. When he was 19 he applied to the

Paris Conservatoire The Conservatoire de Paris (), or the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (; CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue Jean Ja ...

but failed to gain a place. He then started a stage career as juvenile lead in smaller theatres. However, his healthy appetite soon changed his appearance to that of a small, plump comic which set the style for his career.Du Temps des cerises aux Feuilles mortes
French chanson from the end of the 2nd Empire to the 1950s website. Accessed 13 February 2011. In 1862 he became a member of the company of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées before joining a troupe performing in Montmartre. Moving on to the

Théâtre de l'Athénée The Théâtre de l'Athénée () is a theatre at 7 rue Boudreau, in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. Renovated in 1996 and classified a historical monument, the Athénée inherits an artistic tradition marked by the figure of Louis Jouvet who di ...

he was spotted by Offenbach who engaged him for Rabastens in '' Pomme d'api'' in 1873, followed the same year by La Cocardière in '' La jolie parfumeuse'' (which included one of his catch-phrases "C’est immense!"); these were followed by many roles at the

Théâtre de la Renaissance The name Théâtre de la Renaissance () has been used successively for three distinct Parisian theatre companies. The first two companies, which were short-lived enterprises in the 19th century, used the Salle Ventadour, now an office building ...

and the Bouffes-Parisiens. In July 1876 he travelled with some other French performers on tour to Moscow and St Petersburg, and during the summer closure of the Bouffes-Parisiens in 1877 he led part of the troupe to London.Noel E and Stoullig E. ''

Les Annales du Théâtre et de la Musique LES or Les may refer to: People * Les (given name) * Les (surname) * L.E.S. (producer), hip hop producer Space flight * Launch Entry Suit, worn by Space Shuttle crews * Launch escape system, for spacecraft emergencies * Lincoln Experimental ...

, 3eme édition, 1877.'' G Charpentier et Cie, Paris, 1878. Other operetta premieres included Le commandeur in ''

La créole LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second most populous city in the United States of America. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music *La (musical note), or A, the sixth note *"L.A.", a song by Elliott Smit ...

'' (3 November 1875), the archduke in '' Madame l’archiduc'' (1875), Coucoumella in ''La Sorrentine'' (24 March 1876) and Durand in ''

Pierrette et Jacquot ''Pierrette et Jacquot'' is a one-act opérette of 1876 by Jacques Offenbach with a French libretto by Jules Noriac and Philippe Gille. Performance history The première of Pierrette et Jacquot was on 13 October 1876 at the Bouffes-Parisiens, ...

'' (13 October 1876). Daubray created the role of king Ouf in Chabrier’s '' L’etoile'' in 1877 and although there had been problems at rehearsals, he carried off the role with great success.Delage R. ''Emmanuel Chabrier''. Fayard, Paris, 1999. This was followed by Le bailli in ''Babiole'' (16 January 1878), the title role in '' Maître Péronilla'' (13 March 1878), Galuchat in ''Pont d’Avignon'' (3 September 1878) and Boum in ''

La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein ''La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein'' (''The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein'') is an opéra bouffe (a form of operetta), in three acts and four tableaux by Jacques Offenbach to an original French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. The s ...

'' (5 October 1878). In 1879 Daubray’s demands on the management at the Bouffes led to his replacement. He therefore moved to the Théâtre du Palais-Royal, playing in ''Bas de laine'' (10 April 1879), ''Locataires de M Blondeau'' (12 June 1879), ''Le mari de la débutante'' (7 November 1879), ''La corbeille de noces'' (7 February 1880), ''Le Siege de Grenade'' (2 April 1880) and ''Divorçons !'' (6 December 1880).Noel E and Stoullig E. ''Les Annales du Théâtre et de la Musique, 6eme édition, 1880.'' G Charpentier et Cie, Paris, 1881. He appeared in more than 25 stage works up until 1892 – some more successful than others, but fell ill and died from a heart attack.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daubray 1837 births 1892 deaths French male stage actors 19th-century French male opera singers Musicians from Nantes 19th-century French male actors Male actors from Nantes