Michelle Poncet (also called Destouches-Lobreau 1720–1784), was an actress, director, programmer and head of the theater troupe at the Lyon Opera in the 18th century..
Michelle Poncet began as an actress like her parents, under the stage name of "Destouches-Lobreau", then became a troupe leader. Once thought as an actress by local historians of the 1980s, her role along with her sisters Angélique and Marie is considerably different from that of the courtesan actress.[1]
The Poncet sisters, all three theatre directors, made their careers first in Paris, then in Bordeaux, Marseille, Toulouse and Grenoble, before arriving in Lyon. They ran travelling troupes, that followed the trade fairs, and improved the economic and cultural life of the big cities
The fairs closed and the Opéra-Comique was banned from 1745 to 1752, which encouraged them to decentralize their shows. Angélique Destouches became director of the Bordeaux Opera from 1748 to 1752, Michelle of the Lyon Opera from 1752 to 1780,[2] followed by Marie from 1782 to 1785 .[1] [3] [4]
She had financial independence from her husband, which was rare under the Ancien Régime.[5] She was recruited by Jean Lobreau, the only theatre director of the Académie royal de musique (now the Lyon Opera) in the "second city of the kingdom". She succeeded Madeleine Eucher, who had been in place since 1722, and was followed by her sister Marie Poncet-Dunan from 1782 .[1] [6]
She thus gained access to the prestigious position of theatre director of the Royal Academy of Music in Lyon, the "second city of the kingdom" in 1752 and remained there for 25 years until 1780.[7] She was preceded by Madeleine Eucher who had been in place since 1722 and was followed by her sister Marie Dunan from 1784 .[1]
She contributed to the cultural influence of Lyon with her political and artistic skills. She adapted to the evolution of public tastes and by instilling a new dynamic in the programming of lyrical art from the 1760s. She maintained the repertoire from the tragedies of Jean-Baptiste Lully, the ballets of Jean-Philippe Rameau, and the opera bouffe, and made room for the emergence of the genre of comic opera.[1]