Shamus O'Brien

Composer: Charles Villiers Stanford
Librettist: George Henry Jessop

Music

Charles Villiers Stanford (born Dublin, 30 September 1852; died London, 29 March 1924)

Text

George Henry Jessop (1852-1915)

Source

Poem by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Premieres

First Performance: London (Opera-Comique), 2 March 1896.

First Performance in Scotland: Edinburgh (Royal Lyceum Theatre), 3 August 1896.

Background

Shamus O'Brien was Stanford's sixth opera, and by a considerable margin his most successful. The initial London run consisted of eighty performances, after which a very extensive provincial tour began with a week in Edinburgh, followed by one in Glasgow. The tour then visited Newcastle, Southport, Manchester, Bradford, Hull, Preston, Blackpool, Belfast, Limerick, Waterford, Cork and Dublin, before further dates in England. The company then moved to New York and Chicago. On their return there was a further extensive tour in England Wales and Ireland before they set off to Australia. This was clearly an enormous level of success for a new piece.

The initial cast included Louise Kirkby Lunn, Maggie Davis, Denis O'Sullivan, Joseph O'Mara, and Charles Magrath. The conductor in London was Henry J Wood, though he did not stay for the tour. The first venues had Emil Kreuz in charge.

Characters

Shamus O'Brien (baritone)

Nora O'Brien, his wife (mezzo-soprano)

Mike Murphy (tenor)

Father O'Flynn (bass-baritone)

Kitty, Nora's sister (soprano)

Captain Trevor (tenor)

Plot Summary

Described as a 'Romantic Comic Opera', Shamus O'Brien is set during the Irish Rebellion of 1798.