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''Cyrano'' is an opera in four acts composed by Walter Damrosch to an English language libretto by William James Henderson based on Edmond Rostand's play, ''Cyrano de Bergerac''. It premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City on February 27, 1913, with Pasquale Amato in the title role and Frances Alda as Roxane. ==Background and performance history== By the time Damrosch began his Cyrano project, Rostand's play, ''Cyrano de Bergerac'', on which the opera is based, was already well known in the United States. Its first US performance in English had taken place in New York City with Richard Mansfield in the title role in 1898, less than year after its Paris premiere. From 1900 to 1901, Constant Coquelin, who created the title role, had also toured North America performing the play in the original French with Sarah Bernhardt as Roxanne. When Damrosch decided to turn the play into an opera, he commissioned the Anglo-American critic and musicologist, William Henderson to write an English libretto. The libretto closely followed the actions and events of the play, apart from the final confrontation between Roxanne and Cyrano which takes place shortly after the battle at Arras instead of fifteen years later as in the play. Damrosch had finished composing the opera by 1903, but its first performance opportunity did not come until ten years later. Giulio Gatti-Casazza, the Metropolitan Opera's General Manager from 1908 to 1935, had started a policy of producing at least one new English language opera each season. In 1911 Damrosch invited Gatti-Casazza and Arturo Toscanini to his house to hear excerpts from ''Cyrano'', and it was chosen for the 1912/1913 season.〔Alda (1937/2007) p. 186〕 He had revised his original score somewhat and further cuts were made to its original five hour and half hour running time during the rehearsal period. Shortly before the opera's opening, Edmund Rostand pronounced himself "indignant" at the liberties which Damrosch and Henderson had taken in adapting his play, particularly the ending. Rostand had never obtained copyright for the play in the United States and could not prevent adaptations there but vowed that he would never allow Damrosch's ''Cyrano'' to be performed in any country where the play had been copyrighted.〔''New York Times'' (February 21, 1913)〕 ''Cyrano'' premiered on February 27, 1913, with Pasquale Amato in the title role and Frances Alda (Gatti-Casazza's wife) as Roxanne in a performance conducted by Alfred Hertz. The sets were designed by Antonio Rovescalli while the costumes were designed by the famed Paris company, Maison Muelle.〔Maison Muelle, the atelier of Jules and Marie Muelle, produced many of the costumes for opera, theatre and ballet premieres in Europe. See Howard (April 15, 1915) p. SM18〕 The work was warmly received by the audience at the opening night, but less so by the critics. The critic for the ''Boston Evening Transcript'' had praise for the libretto but found the music "lack() individuality, imagination, and communicative force."〔Boston Evening Transcript (February 28, 1913) p. 12〕 Robert Aldrich in his opening night review for the ''New York Times'' likewise praised the libretto as a literary work and noted how well Henderson's verse was suited to the needs of the singers, but went on to say: The music of ''Cyrano'' is undoubtedly composed with skill, with verve, and in many parts with spontaneity. It cannot be called music of inspiration, of originality, or, in the highest sense, of power.〔Aldrich (February 28, 1913)〕 Similar views were expressed by the critic for ''Theatre Magazine''.〔''Theatre Magazine'' (April 1913) pp. 106-107〕 ''Cyrano'' ran for four more performances at the Met that season and was performed by the company once in Atlanta Georgia in April 1913 but was never performed by the Met again. Damrosch revised his opera over the years and revived it in its new version in concert performances Carnegie Hall which opened on 21 February 1941. Damrosch himself conducted the Carnegie Hall revival. Ezio Pinza was originally scheduled to sing the title role, but in the end it was taken Thomas L. Thomas after Pinza withdrew from the project less than a month before the opening night.〔''New York Times'' (21 January 1941) p. 19〕 The revival had not essentially changed the critics assessment of the work. Edward O'Gorman of the ''New York Post'' wrote that its score was one that: ...the average listener might not journey far to hear, but one that he would probably like once he got there, and remember with pleasure if he didn't stay too long.〔Quoted in ''Time'' (March 3, 1941)〕 The 1941 Carnegie Hall run marked the last time the opera was publicly performed. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Cyrano (Damrosch)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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