La bonne d'enfant (The Nanny) is anopérette bouffe, in one act byJacques Offenbach to aFrenchlibretto byEugène Bercioux.
It was first performed at theThéâtre des Bouffes Parisiens,Paris on 14 October 1856. Offenbach's early operettas were small-scale one-act works, since the law in France limited musical theatre works (other thangrand opera) to one-act pieces with no more than three singers and, perhaps, some mute characters.[1] In 1858, this law was changed, and Offenbach was able to offer full-length operettas, beginning withOrpheus in the Underworld.
The piece was seen in 1857 at the St James's Theatre in London, and in Vienna in 1862 withTostée as Dorothée; it was subsequently produced there in Hungarian.[1]
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast,[2] October 14, 1856 (Conductor: Jacques Offenbach) |
|---|---|---|
| Dorothée,a nanny | soprano | Garnier |
| Gargaillou,a chimney sweep | tenor | Michel |
| Mitouflard,a fireman | bass | Dubouchet |
| Bourgeois | Delaquis |
Dorothée is tired of being a nanny and wants to marry to become the mistress of her own house. She has two suitors: Mitouflard, the fireman and Gargaillou, the chimneysweep. During an evening when her employers are out of the house, both gentlemen try to convince her to marry them, which leads to a number of comic situations. She ends up deciding to marry 'Brin d'Amour', the trumpeter of the Royal Dragoons, but tells her suitors that she will invite them to her wedding.
