La Caravane du Caire is an opera or opéra-ballet in three acts by André Grétry, set to a libretto by Étienne Morel de Chédeville. Tradition has it that either the libretto was partially written[1] or the idea of it was allegedly suggested[2] by the Count of Provence, who would go down in history as Louis XVIII of France.
The opera was first performed at the Palace of Fontainebleau on 30 October 1783 and had its public premiere at the Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin, the period venue of the Paris Opera, on 15 January 1784. It was the most successful of Grétry's large-scale works that are lighter in tone: it received over 500 performances at the Paris Opera up to 1829, being billed every year between 1785 and 1791, and, except for 1818, between 1806 and 1828, besides enjoying further irregular stagings during the Revolutionary period.[2]
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, 30 October 1783[3] (Conductor: –) |
|---|---|---|
| Osman, the Pasha of Egypt | basse-taille (bass-baritone) | Auguste-Athanase (Augustin) Chéron |
| Almaïde, the favourite of the Pasha | soprano | Suzanne Joinville |
| Tamorin, the chief eunuch of the Seraglio | haute-contre | [4] |
| Husca, the chief of the caravan and a slave trader | baritone | François Lays |
| Saint-Phar, a French slave | haute-contre | Étienne Lainez |
| Zélime, a slave woman | soprano | Marie-Thérèse Maillard |
| A French slave woman | soprano | Josèphe-Eulalie Audinot |
| An Italian slave woman | soprano | Mlle Buret |
| Two Hungarian women | sopranos | , l'ainée (the elder) Adélaïde Gavaudan, cadette (the younger) |
| Florestan, a ship's captain | basse-taille (bass-baritone) | Henri Larrivée |
| Furville, a French officer | baritone | Louis-Claude-Armand Chardin, called "Chardiny" |
| Osmin, a Seraglio guard | basse-taille (bass-baritone) | M Moreau |
| Seraglio sultanas | sopranos | Gertrude Girardin, Marie-Anne Thaunat, Mlles Josephine, Rosalie |
| Chorus: People of different nations, i. e. free voyagers, slaves and Arabs (act I), women and retinue of the Seraglio (acts II–III) | ||
A caravan is heading to Cairo. Among the travellers are the slave dealer Husca and his slaves Zélime and her husband Saint-Phar. Husca hopes that the beautiful Zélime will fetch a good price on the market. When a band of Arabs attacks the caravan, Saint-Phar offers to help Husca fight them off in return for his freedom. They drive off the Arabs and Husca releases Saint-Phar from slavery but refuses to do the same for Zélime.
In his palace in Cairo the Pasha is sunk in gloom. Nevertheless, he is keen to celebrate the heroism of Florestan, a Frenchman who saved his treasure ship during a storm. The Pasha's wife Almaïde tries to cheer up her husband with a dance by the women of the harem. Husca and the chief eunuch Tamorin have another idea for improving the Pasha's mood: he should buy himself a new European slave girl or two. They go to the bazaar where they watch a Frenchwoman playing the harp, an Italian singing a virtuoso aria, a German performing a folk song, and dances from Georgians and Indians. But the Pasha is smitten at the sight of Zélime and buys her for his harem. Saint-Phar vows to rescue her.
While waiting for the celebrations, Florestan laments the loss of his son at sea. Osmin tells Almaïde of a plot by a Frenchman to free Zélime from the harem. Eager to get rid of her new rival, she urges Osmin to give him every help necessary. Florestan thanks the Pasha for his hospitable treatment and prepares to depart. When news comes of the attempted abduction of Zélime, Florestan is outraged to hear that the culprit is a Frenchman. However, it turns out that Saint-Phar is Florestan's lost son. The Pasha relents and frees Saint-Phar and Zélime, allowing the family to be reunited.