Juliette Simon-Girard

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Juliette Simon-Girard at the Théâtre des Folies-Dramatiques

Juliette-Joséphine Simon-Girard (8 May 1859 – 1954) was a French soprano, principally in operetta.

Comédie Française, and her mother was Caroline Girard, of the Opéra-Comique
.

Career

Girard was born at Paris. After studies at the Conservatoire in 1876 (in the class of Henri de Régnier) she made her debut at the Théâtre des Folies-Dramatiques as Carlinette in Offenbach's La foire Saint-Laurent on 10 February 1877, and then became an overnight star by creating the role of Serpolette in Les cloches de Corneville on 19 April 1877.[2] During the run of Les cloches de Corneville she met and married the well-known tenor Simon-Max, thereafter becoming Mme Simon-Girard.[1]

At the age of 19, she created the title role in Offenbach’s Madame Favart; then La fille du tambour-major in 1879 becoming one of Paris’s most popular performers, prominent on the city's stages for 30 years.[1]

At the Folies-Dramatiques she also created roles in Beau Nicolas (1880), Les poupées de l'infante (1881), Fanfan la tulipe (1882), La princesse des Canaries (1883); moving to the Théâtre des Nouveautés she was in the premiere of La vie mondaine. On return to the Folies-Dramatiques she replaced Ugalde in Les petits mousquetaires and then created the title role in La fauvette du temple (17 November 1885). After singing with her husband in the premiere of La chatte blanche, at the Théâtre du Châtelet on 2 April 1887, she spent a year in Belgium

Ali-Baba
.

Simon-Girard’s return to Paris was at the Théâtre de la Gaîté in 1888 in revivals of Le grand Mogul and La fille du tambour-major, before creating the title role in Voyage de Suzette on 20 January 1890. After several productions at the Théâtre de la Renaissance (where she created Mlle Asmodée in 1891 and La femme de Narcisse in 1892, and revived La jolie parfumeuse in 1892, she went back to the Folies-Dramatiques and created Eva in Varney’s Miss Robinson on 17 July 1892.

From 1893, she was at the

Théâtre des Bouffes Parisiens with more premieres[2]
including Olga in Pessard's Mam'zelle Carabin (3 November 1893). She met her second husband Félix Huguenet while performing in L’enlèvement de la Toledad in 1894, and from then on took on more comedy acting parts.

In November 1899 she took the title role at the Théâtre des Variétés in a major and successful revival of La belle Hélène, which ran for over five hundred performances.[3]

In 1903, Simon-Girard made recordings of songs from Offenbach operettas (Barbe-bleue, Belle Hélène, Madame Favart, La Jolie Parfumeuse, La Périchole and La Grande-Duchesse),[4] excerpts from Les cloches de Corneville, and songs by Messager, Audran and Lecocq.

Complete discography (all 23 titles were cut in Paris, in 1903, for the Gramophone & Typewriter Company)
Catalogue number Matrix number Title, excerpt, composer
33189 1740F Madame Boniface : Couplets de la Marguerite (Lacôme)
33190 1741F Miss Robinson : Valse des ramiers (Varney)
33309 1751F La Belle Hélène : Amours divins (Offenbach)
33310 1752F Madame Favart : Ronde des vignes (Offenbach)
33311 1753F La Femme de Narcisse : C'est la fille à ma tante (Varney)
33312 1754F La Fille de Madame Angot : Jadis les rois (Lecocq)
33313 1755F Malagueña - Valse chantée (Fahrbach)
33316 1830F Les Cloches de Corneville : On dit (Planquette)
33317 1831F Les Cloches de Corneville Dans ma mystérieuse histoire
33327 1912F La Jolie Parfumeuse : La famille Bruscambille (Offenbach)
33328 1913F La Fauvette au Temple : Valse de la fauvette (Messager)
33329 1914F La Fauvette au Temple : Rondeau des blés
33330 1915F Les Cloches de Corneville : Chanson du cidre (Planquette)
33331 1916F Le grand Mogol : Le petit vin de Suresnes (Audran)
33332 1917F Le Voyage de Suzette : Valse d'ivresse (Baggers)
34018 1918F La Mascotte : Duo des dindons (Audran) [duet with Jean Delvoye]
33358 2029F Les Dragons de Villars : Couplets de l'hermite (Maillart)
33359 2030F Carmen : Je dis que rien ne m'épouvante (Bizet)
33371 2113F Le Grand Mogol : Allons, petit serpent (Audran)
33372 2114F La Périchole : Air de la lettre (Offenbach)
33373 2115F La Périchole : Couplets de l'aveu
33374 2116F La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein : Légende du verre (Offenbach)
33375 2117F La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein : Dites-lui

She died at Nice. Her son was Aimé Simon-Girard.

References

  1. ^ a b c Gänzl K. Juliette Simon-Girard. In: The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. Macmillan, London and New York, 1997.
  2. ^ a b c Martin J. Nos artistes des théâtres et concerts. Paul Ollendorff, Paris, 1895.
  3. Les Annales du Théâtre et de la Musique
    , 26ème édition, 1900. G Charpentier et Cie, Paris, 1901.
  4. ^ Crichton R. The Operettas of Offenbach. In: Opera on Record 3. Blyth, A (ed). Hutchinson, London, 1984, p181.
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