Plutus

thumb|alt=cover of musical score, with decorative lettering, showing title of opera and its creators|1886 vocal score of Plutus Plutus is a three-act opéra comique by Charles Lecocq, with a libretto by Albert Millaud and Gaston Jollivet. It was first presented at the Opéra-Comique, Paris, on 31 March 1886; it was not a success and was taken off after eight performances. This was the first and last opera Lecocq wrote for the Opéra-Comique. The story, with an ancient Greek setting, is loosely based on a play by Aristophanes, and portrays the damage that wealth can do to the course of true love. Background and performance history Despite his great popularity with the Parisian public during the 1870s and early 1880s, Lecocq had not been invited to compose for the prestigious Opéra-Comique. In 1884 he finally received a commission to do so. Work proceeded slowly because Lecocq's health was uncertain, and he required serious surgery at one point, but the score was completed by the end of July 1885. For the libretto Albert Millaud and Gaston Jollivet reworked a two-act verse comedy they had written in 1873 for the Théâtre du Vaudeville. The manager of the Vaudeville at the time of the first production was Léon Carvalho. He had gone on to be the director of the Opéra Comique, where the operatic version of Plutus was put into rehearsal in December 1885. Lecocq dedicated the score to him. For their plot, Millaud and Jollivet drew on Aristophanes' comedy Plutus, adding a love interest and softening the satire. The opera received notices ranging from polite to critical, and it was taken off after eight performances and replaced with a revival of Ambroise Thomas' Le songe d'une nuit d'été. Lecocq wrote no more works for the Opéra-Comique.