French opera in Siberia in the mirror of Irkutsk musical and theatrical criticism 1900–1904
Authors:   M.I. Glinka Novosibirsk State Conservatoire, Svetlova Olga A. 
Published: November 2024

The history of Siberian musical criticism as one of the most important spheres of Russian musical culture at the beginning of the 20th century – extremely rich and multifaceted, at the same time full of many blank spots. Regional musical-critical thought about the performances of French operas in the Irkutsk theatre is of particular interest, which makes it possible to clarify a number of issues.Has the French romantic opera submitted to Siberian performers? How popular was it with the public? What problems did you encounter when staging in a peripheral theatre? In the repertoire of the Irkutsk musical theatre in the period 1900–1904 “Faust”, “Carmen”, “Huguenots”, “Mignon” took the leading positions, “Robert the Devil”, “African woman”, “Prophet”, “Zhidovka”, “Samson and Delilah”, “Fra-Diavolo”, “Romeo and Juliet” often staged. In addition to the grand-opera and lyrical opera, Siberians loved operetta and vaudeville. And this repertoire is replete with titles that are currently very rarely found on posters – “Beautiful Elena”, “Orpheus in Hell”, “Creole”, “Pericola”, “Bluebeard”, “Mademoiselle Nitush” “Lisa Patrikeevna”, “Corneville Bells”, “Rip-Rip”, “Ali Baba”, “Girofle-Giroflya”, “Heart and Hand”, “Travel to China”, “Infernal Love”. Musical critical publications in Siberian periodicals of that time preserved a lively response of local journalists to the performances of French operas. Irkutsk critics raise topical issues in reviews of the operas “Huguenots”, “Faust”, “Mignon” and “Fra-Diavolo”, published in the newspapers “Vostochnoye Obozreniye” and “Irkutskiye Gubernskiye Vedomosti”. Among them is the quality of staging a large French opera in a provincial theatre, which requires the perseverance of singers, stage performance, entertainment, a large-scale orchestra and chorus, and corresponding financial investments in such projects. Critics pay attention to the harmony and balanced sound of the orchestra, the skill of the conductors, talk about the integrity of the drama and the inevitable cuts. One of the issues discussed on the pages of Irkutsk newspapers is the relationship between the spectacle and musicality of French opera, the acting and vocal sides. Enthusiastic remarks about local singers who performed their parts perfectly musically, in an exquisite French style, are found in reviews. At the same time, all sorts of imitations are criticized, for example, imitations of Shalyapin in the embodiment of the image of Mephistopheles, as well as weak staging of a comic opera, which turns the performance into a booth. Nevertheless, despite the staging clichés, the inevitable cuts, the lack of choral and ballet performing forces, French opera was in demand by the Siberian public, and this unconditional interest is reflected in numerous reviews and responses. The masterpieces of French opera named in the article were among the most staged in Europe, and in terms of mastering the repertoire at the beginning of the 20th century Siberia did not lag behind of the capital theaters.