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| Manon | |
|---|---|
| Opera by Jules Massenet | |
 Geraldine Farrar in the title role | |
| Librettist | |
| Language | French |
| Based on | Manon Lescaut by Abbé Prévost |
| Premiere | 19 January 1884 Opéra-Comique, Paris |
Manon (French pronunciation: [manɔ̃]) is an opéra comique in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille, based on the 1731 novel L'histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut by the Abbé Prévost. It was first performed at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on 19 January 1884, with sets designed by Eugène Carpezat (act 1), Auguste Alfred Rubé and Philippe Chaperon (acts 2 and 3), and Jean-Baptiste Lavastre (act 4).
Prior to Massenet's work, Halévy (Manon Lescaut, ballet, 1830) and Auber (Manon Lescaut, opéra comique, 1856) had used the subject for musical stage works. Massenet also wrote a one-act sequel to Manon, Le portrait de Manon (1894), involving the Chevalier des Grieux as an older man.[1]
The composer worked at the score of Manon at his country home outside Paris and also at a house at The Hague once occupied by Prévost himself.[2]
Manon is Massenet's most popular and enduring opera and, having "quickly conquered the world's stages",[3] it has maintained an important place in the repertory since its creation. It is the quintessential example of the charm and vitality of the music and culture of the Parisian Belle Époque. In 1893 an opera by Giacomo Puccini entitled Manon Lescaut, and based on the same novel was premiered and has also become popular.