Madeleine

[[File:Victor Herbert.jpg|thumb|{{center|Madeleines composerVictor Herbert (1859–1924)}}]]Madeleine''' is an opera in one act by Victor Herbert set to a libretto by Grant Stewart, after the French play Je dîne chez ma mère (I'm dining at my mother's house) by Adrien Decourcelle and Lambert-Thiboust. It premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in New York on 24 January 1914 with Frances Alda in the title role. Reception and performance history For its world premiere on 24 January 1914, Madeleine was presented at the Metropolitan Opera as a double-bill with Pagliacci (with Caruso as Canio). It had a total of six performances at the Met, three times paired with Pagliacci, twice with Don Pasquale, and once (for its final performance) with the United States premiere of Wolf-Ferrari's L'amore medico.Madeleine was Herbert's second opera, but in contrast to many of his operettas and musicals, it did not prove popular and dropped from sight after its premiere run. Although it received a warm reception from the first night audience, particularly Madeleine's aria, "A Perfect Day", the New York Times critic dismissed it as "not a notable landmark in the progress of native art." Roles Synopsis