Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-11-30
Works Announced BY the Juch Opera
Company at the Duquesne Thea
ter for This Week.
THE MASTERPIECE OF MEYERBEER
And His PosthumOuS Work, With Lohengrin
and the First Production of the
Flying Dutchman
FROM THE MIGHTY PEN OF WAGNER.
Odds and Ends of Interest to AL Lovers Of the Art
Divine in the Two Cities

Divine in the Two Cities.
II the performance of the Juch Opera
Company fairly realizes the promise of the
repertoire announced for the week, our new
Duquesne Theater will open in a blaze OF
operate glory, such as has but once or twice
before burst upon Pittsburg's vision. That
''if' deserves its capital letter, though; Mr..
Locke sets no small task before his troupe,
in the particular operas chosen for this en-
gagement to say nothing of the general OBJ
stacles that make it imprac;icable to give
wholly complete and adequate productions
of modern grand opera with a travelling
company.
To begin at the small end: al Trovatore"
and "Faust," while ten heard here in the
past, maintain unabated their extraordinary
popularity; no manager can be expected to
throw over all the old reliables for the nov-
elites which NAV or NAV not win popular
success. Eerdi's ''RigoIetto' has not been
worthily presented here ("Abbott Opera"
don't count) in many years. 1t WAS first
produced in 1851, with which date Nerdi's
lasting reputation really began, though the
dozen preceding years had brought out many
operas from MS pen. With "Trovatore" 1.-TWO
ysaTs g0ungeF TaTiaHa and M SalG I'm IN
style of composition so long identified
with NerdI's name, hut upon which he made
so great an advance in Aida" QS7D
and the Requiem Mass lS74), and which he
quite abandoned in his latest work, "Otello."
The dramatic subject-matter of "RigolettO" is
well known through the play, The Fools Re-
venGe" The title role, so wonderfully played
BY Edwin Booth in the drama. belongs to the
baritone in the opera; it will give Mr.. Otto
Rathjens fine chance for his PittsDurg debut
Meyerbeers "Huguenots'' and "L'Afrlcaine'
have also kept away from US for many years.
Indeed, the writer has not heard of any per-
fOrmance of the latter IN this city; the former
was given here fully 10 years ago by the
Str3kOsch troupe. with Kellogg and Cary. Both
are, therefore. practically new to the mass
of the local public. The "Huguenots," Meyer
beers acknowledged masterpiece, was pro-
duced in Paris IN 1886 five years after Robert
lie Diable' had made him famous In these two
operas the composer realized his fullest pow
ers, though he had been well known before.
The "Huguenots' mas a rich and deeply inter-
eSung theme in the savage religious persecu-
ton that eliminated in st. Bartholomews Day;
the treacherous ga!lantry of the Court of Cath
erlne de Medicis is well contrasted with the
sturdy manhood of old Marcel and the other
Huguenots. In this work Meyerbeer gives
the most evidence of his German
birth and education; there is a seriousness in
his score that well BELTS such theme His
striking use of Luther's hymn, Elm Feste
4
phonlc finale and his daring innovation (since
followed by Wagner and others) of prolonginC
the great love duet through the greater por-
ton OF an entire act, may be mentioned as
salient points.
Meyerbeer was engaged IN writing "L'Afri-
came" for more than score of years, but died
Nav , 1864. in the midst of the preparations for
its hrst production at the Grand Opera, Par1s
which finally occurred in April, 1866. In the
Intervals of his work on this score and of
his quarrels with Scribe. its librettist, he
composed and produced several others of his
best known operas. Though not his greatest
work. as MeYerbeer fondly expected it to be- it
is one of his best productions: in spite of the
variations Of sIyle, due TO its long incubation
1t IS less artificial in character and gives more
poetcal and feeling setting to its romantic
book than is the case with most of his other
works, "LAtTicaine" is concerned with the
adventures of Nasco di Cana, the Portuguese
explorer with touching and romantic episodes,
IN which slave girl, SeLikd, figures proml-
nently as the heroine. The action takes place
in Lisbon, on shipboard and upon an island on
the east coast of Africa.
The Wagner Operas.
The two operas by that Titan of the modern
stage, Richard Wagner, constitute the chief
feature of the week. ''Lohengrin'' has been
heard here but once before, when the National
OperaI Company gave it in November, 1857.
With "Tannhaeuser." given the same week. it
served as the medium of introducing Wagner
formally and fairly to the local stage; and we
have seen no more of him since. "Lohengrin."
with its poetical story and richly, beautiful
musical setting, has thus far been the most
popular OF Wagner'S works. When he wrote it,
Wagner stood on the dividing line between the
conventional opera Ot the past and the music
drama OF the future. This score. therefore, pre-
sents many of the best points of the old school
oneras hut combined with a dramatic con-
slstencF 10 all the elements on the stage and
p significant Orchestration therefore unknown
! e Is nlanP of riS for
instance, where ne had perfected his principles
10 point where many are vet unable to follow
The Flying Dutchman," which will this
week have its first PlttSburg hearing, stands at
the commencement of this same intermediate
period in Nagner's development 1t is to be
compared backward, rather than for
Rienzi," its immediate predecessor. The
"Dutchman' written in 1872 at
Mcudon, near Paris, shortly after Wagner had
taken stormy sea-voyage, during which he
had read the old legend of the phantom ship.
The impressions of both voyage and legend
were so strong. that he went to work at once
TO embody them in an opera and finished it in
about seven weeks. 1t was produced the same
year at Dresden. but was not at first received
with much favor by the people, who expected
another work like 'Rienzi, in the spectacular
style Of Meyerbeer. 1t has since become better
however. and is now in the roper
toire OF the leading opera houses the world
over.
The characteristics of the "Dutchman"
e'-ol dlt tllAe IeISely put Dy henry i. L mex:
1T contains the germs of most of his later re-
1orms-leading motives, a text of real poetic
value in form and contents. a highly character
1suc orchestral part, an unprecedented freedom
in the use OF dlscOrds and modulations an
avoidance of arias and ornamental vocalism,
The acting assumed as much importance as
the singing; ana the scenery, instead of being
dragged on the stage for mere effect, became
the necessary background of the action
Big Benefit Concert.
THE testimonial concert to Mr.. B. weis, to
be given next Friday afternoon at o'clock in
the Grand Opera House, promises exceedingly
well. 1t is expected to have an orchestra of 10
players, which would make one of the largest
ever heard here. The Great Western Band
will, of course, be there in full force to honor
the conductor who, for over 25 years has led
CARNATIONS IN this part of the country. Miss
Agnes VOgel Mr.. Jos. A. Vogel and Mr. Sraub
form the choice trio of Yocalists for the big
benefit The programme, as handed in, reads
thus:
FART ].
March-Tannhauser ............. Wagner
Orchestra.
OFeEhu4C- beetnOVen
Orchestra.
Song-''Archibald Douglass Lowe
Herr Staub,
Girl''. Balfe
Miss Agnes Vogel ana Mr.. Jos. A. Yogel.
6ymphonie-No. Major ............ Beethoven
Allegro con brio-Andante cantabile-Nenuetto
ALLEGRO Motto.
Orchestra.
PART II.
Overture-''Rienzi',. Wagner
Great Western Band.
Fackeltanz No. 3................ Meverbeer
-, .rGHs oh In