Significant French Operas

L’Heure espagnole

Opera in 1 act

Music by Maurice Ravel

Libretto by Franc-Nohain

First Performance: Opéra-Comique, Paris, May 19, 1911

Cast:
Concepcion                                     Soprano
Gonzalve                                         Tenor
Torquemada                                   Tenor
Ramiro                                             Baritone
Don Inigo                                        Bass

Background

Synopsis

     Torquemada, an absent-minded clockmaker, is reminded by his wife, Concepcion, that it is Thursday and time for him to wind all the government clocks. She usually takes advantage of this weekly absence to entertain her lovers. Ramiro, a muleteer who has entered the shop to have his watch repaired, is left behind with Concepcion, who is annoyed because she expects an admirer. When Gonzalve arrives, she quickly hides him in a grandfather clock and asks Ramiro to carry it to her room. Don Inigo, a banker and admirer of Concepcion, also comes for a tryst, and he too is hidden in a clock. A switch of clocks effects a change in lovers, and a farcical situation results. Meanwhile, Concepcion has begun to admire the virile Ramiro, and she takes him to her room. When Torquemada returns, she explains that Gonzalve and Inigo are merely customers, and he sells them each a clock. He chooses to overlook his wife's indiscretions, and they all sing a sparkling quintet.

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Last updated: January 09, 2008