About the work
Opera in five acts by Jules Massenet after Alphonse Daudet's novel 'Sapho' (1884), with a libretto by Henri Cain and Arthur Bernède. It premiered on 27 November 1897 at the Paris Opéra-Comique, with Emma Calvé creating the title role.
Plot
In Paris, the young Provençal student Jean Gaussin falls in love with the artist's model Fanny Legrand, nicknamed Sapho for her free-living past. When he learns of her earlier lovers and a child she has kept secret, he leaves her despite her fidelity and pleading. Fanny is left alone and returns to her old life.
Cultural significance
The premiere's success rested largely on Emma Calvé's stage presence; Sapho never entered the standard repertoire. In 1909 Massenet revised the score for a second version, also given at the Opéra-Comique.