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La circassienne (The Circassian Woman) is an opera ( opéra comique) in three acts composed by Daniel Auber to a French-language libretto by Eugène Scribe based on Louvet de Couvrai's 1787 novel Une année de la vie du chevalier de Faublas. It was premiered on 2 February 1861 by the Opéra-Comique at the second Salle Favart in Paris. Set in Russia during the Russian-Circassian War, the opera was also known under the titles Morte d'amour (Died of Love), La révolte au Sérail (The Revolt in the Seraglio), Alexis, and Faublas.
However, the opera's success proved to be short-lived. In October 1861 an adapted English version of La circassienne was given three performances by the Caroline Richings opera company in Philadelphia,Hamilton, Frank. Opera in Philadelphia: Performance Chronology 1850–1874 , p. 81. Retrieved 22 July 2013. but it received no performances in Europe outside France. It remained in the Opéra-Comique's repertoire for only one year with a total of 49 performances. In his reminiscences of an encounter with Auber shortly after the premiere, Richard Wagner described it as "an uncommonly childish piece of patchwork, scarcely credible as coming from its grey-haired author" and wrote that Auber refused to talk about it, telling him "Ah, let us leave the farces in peace!"Richard Wagner (1995). Actors and Singers (translated by William Ashton Ellis), p. 342. Originally published in 1896, republished by University of Nebraska Press. The opera's overture was still occasionally played as a concert piece in the late 19th century and was recorded in the 1970s by Arthur Dennington conducting the Modern Symphony Orchestra (released on the Rare Recorded Editions label).WorldCat. OCLC 15506665. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
Scribe died two weeks after the premiere of La circassienne. His libretto was used again in 1871 as the basis for a German-language operetta by Franz von Suppé. Suppé's setting, entitled Fatinitza, achieved great success which led to litigation by Scribe's widow.Robert Letellier (2011) Introduction to Daniel-François-Esprit Auber: La Circassienne, pp. ix–x.Cambridge Scholars Publishing. Auber lived on for another ten years and composed three more operas, including Le premier jour de bonheur, his last major success.
| + !Role !Voice type !Premiere cast, 2 February 1861Premiere cast based on Letellier (2011). Voice type based on Casaglia (2005) | ||
| Alexis Zouboff, a young Russian officer | tenor | Achille-Félix Montaubry |
| Orsakoff, a Russian general | baritone | Barielle |
| Olga, Orsakoff's niece and ward | soprano | Mlle Monrose |
| Lanskoi, an artist and Alexis's friend | tenor | Joseph-Antoine-Charles Couderc |
| Aboul Kasim, a Circassian sultan | bass | Eugène-Louis Troy |
| Soltikoff, a Russian captain | baritone | |
| Perod, a Russian brigadier | baritone | Ambroise |
| Irak, a Circassian officer | bass | Davoust |
| Boudour, a eunuch in the service of Aboul Kasim | tenor | Paul-Pierre Laget |
| Zoloé, one of Aboul Kasim's wives | soprano | Mlle. Prost |
| Neïla, one of Aboul Kasim's wives | soprano | Mlle. Bousquet |
| Russian soldiers, Circassians, | ||
As rehearsals are underway, General Orsakoff arrives at the fort with Olga, his niece and ward with whom Alexis had fallen in love when he was recuperating from battle wounds at her aunt's villa in the Crimea. The General is furious at the amateur theatricals and threatens to have the officers shot for abandoning their watch. However, when he sees Alexis in his costume, he thinks he has found his lost love, the beautiful Prascovia, and calms down. Olga observes that Prascovia bears a very striking resemblance to Alexis and to deflect suspicion, "Prascovia" tells Olga and Orsakoff that "she" is Alexis's sister. Orsakoff begs Olga to take on Prascovia as her companion, to which she agrees convinced that Prascovia is Alexis's sister. At this point there is a surprise attack by the Circassian army who kidnap Olga and Alexis (still dressed as Prascovia) and take them off to Sultan Aboul-Kazim's harem.
After Olga and Alexis's marriage has taken place, Lanskoi decides to put an end to Orsakoff's quest for Prascovia once and for all. He concocts another letter from Prascovia to Orsakoff. In it she declares that she is about to commit suicide out of despair at his failure to answer her first letter: "When you read these lines, I shall have ceased to live." Orsakoff accepts that she is now dead. Alexis is spared any future embarrassment, and Orsakoff's vanity is satisfied—a beautiful woman has killed herself because of her great love for him.
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