TheSalle Le Peletier orLepeletier[1] (sometimes referred to as theSalle de la rue Le Peletier or theOpéra Le Peletier)[2] was the home of theParis Opera from 1821 until the building was destroyed by fire in 1873. The theatre was designed and constructed by the architectFrançois Debret on the site of the garden of the Hôtel de Choiseul on the rue Lepeletier.[3] Due to the many changes in government and management during the theatre's existence, it had a number of different official names, the most important of which were: Théâtre de l'Académie Royale de Musique (1821–1848), Opéra-Théâtre de la Nation (1848–1850), Théâtre de l'Académie Nationale de Musique (1850–1852), Théâtre de l'Académie Impériale de Musique (1852–1854), Théâtre Impérial de l'Opéra (1854–1870), and Théâtre National de l'Opéra (1870–1873).[4]
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WhenLouis XVIII's nephew,Charles Ferdinand, duc de Berry, was fatally stabbed on the night of 13 February 1820 in front of the former theatre of the Paris Opera, theSalle de la rue de Richelieu, the king decided that the theatre would be demolished in order to build a commemorative chapel in its place. However, the project to build a chapel was never carried out due to the1830 revolution. Today theFontaine Louvois in the Square Louvois occupies the spot where the chapel would have been built.[5] The Salle de la rue de Richelieu had been the principal venue of the Paris Opera since 1794. Very soon after the death of his nephew in February 1820, the king commissioned the architect François Debret to design a new theatre for the Opéra on theRue Le Peletier, which was completed one year later. During the construction the opera and ballet companies occupied the Théâtre Favart and theSalle Louvois.[6]
The Salle Le Peletier was inaugurated on 16 August 1821 with a mixed-bill that opened with the anthem "Vive Henry VIII", and included the composerCatel's operaLes bayadères and theBallet MasterGardel's balletLe Retour de Zéphire.[7] Although the theatre was meant to be temporary and was built of wood and plaster, it continued to be used by the Opéra for more than fifty years. Many of the greatgrand operas of the 19th century were presented for the first time on its stage, among them: Rossini'sGuillaume Tell (1829), Meyerbeer'sRobert le Diable (1831), Halévy'sLa Juive (1835), and Verdi'sDon Carlos (1867).[8]
The theatre, which was 14,000 square metres in area with a 104 ft. stage, was quite advanced for its time.[citation needed] On 6 February 1822 gas was used for the first time in order to light the stage effects inNicolas Isouard's operaAladin ou La Lampe merveilleuse.[9] The stage and orchestra pit were able to be removed in order to transform the auditorium into a massive hall which could accommodate large balls and other festivities.
Along with theBallet of Her Majesty's Theatre inLondon, the Salle Le Peletier played host to the heyday of theromantic ballet, with suchBalletmasters asJules Perrot,Arthur Saint-Léon,Filippo Taglioni,Joseph Mazilier,Jean Coralli, andPaul Taglioni staging many masterworks for theParis Opera Ballet. Among these works:La Sylphide (1832),Giselle (1841),Paquita (1846),Le corsaire (1856),Le papillon (1860),La source (1866), andCoppélia (1870). Among the greatballerinas to grace the stage of the Opéra during this time wereMarie Taglioni,Carlotta Grisi,Carolina Rosati,Fanny Elssler,Lucile Grahn, andFanny Cerrito.
![The Principal Ballerinas of the Paris Opera (clockwise from top left): Lise Noblet, Marie Taglioni, Mlle Julia [de Varennes], Alexis Dupont (née Félicité Noblet, she used the name of her husband Alexis Dupont), Amélie Legallois, and Pauline Montessu, premiers sujets in 1831.[10]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aParis_Opera_-_Principal_Ballerinas_-1832.jpg)
In 1858 the Salle Le Peletier was the setting for one of the most famous games in the history ofChess, theOpera Game between the American masterPaul Morphy (White) and two French aristocrats, the Duke of Brunswick and Count Isouard. The game was played in the Duke's private box during a performance ofBellini'sNorma.[11]
On the night of 29 October 1873, the Salle Le Peletier met the same fate as many of its predecessors: it was destroyed by a fire which raged for 27 hours, believed to have been started by the theatre's innovative gas lighting. Fortunately, in 1858 EmperorNapoleon III had hired the civic plannerBaron Haussmann to begin construction on a second theatre at a more prominent location for the Parisian Opera and Ballet based on the design of architectCharles Garnier. In 1875, the new theatre, today known as thePalais Garnier, was inaugurated.
Operas
Ballets
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