The opening performance of Mapleson's spring 1879 season in Glasgow gave Scottish audiences their first experience of Bizet's masterpiece.
In accordance with standard UK practice at the time, the work was translated into Italian, in spite of the fact that Madame Trebelli was actually herself French. Alwina Valleria was the only one of the four principals to be recreating the part she had sung at the opera's London launch
The reason for the performance taking place at the Prince of Wales Theatre was a very simple one - the Theatre Royal had just burned down. The critics convey the impression of a rather uneasy performance. There seems to have been a distinct lack of rehearsal both of orchestra and chorus, whose role is seen as difficult.
The cast is as reviewed in the Glasgow Herald and Scotsman.
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