About the work
Madame Favart is a three-act opéra comique by Jacques Offenbach, with a libretto by Alfred Duru and Henri Chivot loosely based on the actress Marie-Justine Favart and her husband, the playwright Charles-Simon Favart. It premiered on 28 December 1878 at the Théâtre des Folies-Dramatiques in Paris.
Plot
The playwright Favart and his actress wife Justine must flee persecution by a power-hungry marshal. Disguised as a street singer, Justine helps a young couple while also charming a governor into securing the young man's promotion; after a string of mix-ups and arrests, the couple ultimately wins royal favour.
Cultural significance
This late work pairs witty orchestration with lyrical writing and is counted among the most accomplished stage works of Offenbach's final years. A German version prepared in 1955 by Heinrich Voigt and Carlernst Ortwein became the adaptation most often performed in German-speaking theatres.