Persee 2nd edition, 1722

King Louis XIV's involvement in campaigns against the Dutch/Swedish alliance in early 1682 prevented him from attending the premiere of Persée in April of that year.  As was customary in the operas of composer Jean-Baptiste Lully and librettist Philippe Quinault, the prologue included references to current battlefield exploits and portrayed the king as a paragon of virtue. The prologues of previous Lully operas emphasized glory and prowess over virtue; the change in emphasis in Persée may have resulted from the increased influence of Madame de Maintenon (the king's new mistress) in the court and her pension for decorum. In his dedication, Lully states his intentions: "I understand that in describing the favorable Gifts which Persée has received from the Gods and the astonishing enterprises which he has achieved so gloriously, I am tracing a Portrait of the heroic qualities and the wonderful deeds of Your Majesty." 

The plot of Persée is loosely taken from an episode in Ovid's Metamorphoses, concerning the death of the snake-haired Gorgon Medusa (Méduse) at the hands of Persus (Persée), son of the god Jupiter and the mortal woman Danaë. Grand spectacle permeates Persée, which includes the famous decapitation of the Mèduse - this time on stage! A quadrangle of genuine and unrequited lovers forms the center of plot with the genuine love of Andromède and Persée prevailing in the end.

The Prologue opens in a dark forest. Virtue sees herself threatened by faltering Fortune. Fortune appears in the company of Splendor and Abundance and asks Virtue to create a Hero (recognized as King Louix XIV) as a peace offering. All praise the newly-created Hero, who in the opera to follow will be championed by Apollo. 

As Act I begins, the curtains open to reveal a magnificently decorated public square in Ethiopia. King Céphée expresses the terror his people feel for the snake-haired Mèduse, who threatens the Ethiopian people with her baleful gaze that turns anyone she looks on to stone.. To curry favor with Juno, the Ethiopians prepare a series of plays. As the plot begins to unfold, we learn that Mérope, sister-in-law of the king, secretly loves Persée. However, Persée loves and is loved by Androméde, the king's daughter. Androméde, on the other hand, is betrothed to Phinée, her uncle, who suspects that she has another love interest. The plays are abruptly interrupted by a messenger who announces that Mèduse is again transforming people into stone. 

Act II takes place in the Gardens of Céphée's palace. Céphée announces that Persée is willing to release the Ethiopians from Mèduse's grip by cutting off her head. As a reward, he is to have Androméde as his own. Androméde and Mérope fear for Persée's life and pray for his safe return. In taking his leave, Persée learns that, although promised to Phinée, Androméde loves only him. Mercure assures Persée of the assistance of all the Gods (with the exception of Juno--jealous, as usual, of Jupiter's illegitimate child). A troupe of Cyclops brings a sword forged by Vulcan to Persée, nymphs bring Pallas's diamond shield, and a band of underworld demons present him with the helmet of Pluto. 

The Act III curtain opens in the cave of the Gorgons. The snake-haired Mèduse describes the terrible fate she has endured through the jealousy of Pallas in a powerful air, "Je port l'epouvante" ("I bear terror"). Mercure casts a powerful spell with his own exquisite air, "O tranquille sommeil," which causes a deep sleep to come over Mèduse. Using Pallas's shield as a mirror to avoid the fell gaze of the Gorgon, Persée decapitates Mèduse. Then, using Pluto's helmet to make himself invisible, Persée flees the wrath of the remaining Gorgons carrying Mèduse's head. 

As Act IV begins, the Ethiopians are awaiting the victorious Persée on a rocky seacoast as a storm arises. A sailor, Idas, enters to announce that the furious Juno, in alliance with Neptune, is determined to sacrifice Andromède to a sea-monster. Phinée, rather than defending Andromède, admits that he would rather see her dead than in the arms of his rival in an impassioned air, L'Amour meurt dans mon coeur ("Love dies in my heart"). Before the despairing eyes of the king, the Tritons chain Andromède to a rock. At the last moment, Persée flies toward the approaching monster and kills it. The storm ends and the Ethiopians return to the beach to celebrate victory. 

The first scene of Act V takes place in a place prepared for the wedding of Persée and Androméde. Mérope, who mourns her lost hope of marrying Persée, longs for death. She and Phinée, with the help of Juno, decide to avenge themselves on Persée. As the high priest starts the wedding ceremony, however, Mérope repents of her treachery and interrupts to tell Persée of Phinée's advancing army. The guests flee and Persée and Phinée do battle. With Juno protecting Phinée, it seems that he will win; however, Persée, using the remaining power of the Gorgon's head, turns his enemy to stone. 

The scene changes to Venus' palace. Venus announces to the Ethiopians that Juno is appeased and that, from now on, they will live in peace. While Céphée, Cassiope, Persée and Androméde hover on Mercure's wings, the Ethiopians celebrate with dancing and singing.

Title from title page: PERSEE, / TRAGEDIE / MISE EN MUSIQUE.
Genre: tragédie lyrique (Tragédie en musique)
Siglum from Lully thematic catalog: LWV 60
Composer: Jean-Baptiste Lully, 1632-1687
Librettist: Philippe Quinault, 1635-1688
Libretto based on: a story from Ovid's Metamorphoses
Setting: Various mythological places
Premiere: Paris, Palais-Royal, April 17 or 18, 1682
First published: Paris: Christophe Ballard, 1682
Volume in the UNT Lully Collection: Second edition, Paris: J. B. C. Ballard, 1722 

For further reading on Persée, see:

Legrand, Raphaelle.  "Persée de Lully et Quinault: Orientation pour l'analyse dramaturgique d'une tragedie en musique."  Analyse Musicale 27 (April 1992), 9-14. 

Newman, Joyce.  Jean-Baptiste Lully and his Tragédies Lyriques.  UMI Research Press, 1979. 

Rosow, Lois.  "Persée."  In Grove Music Online.  Edited by Laura Macy.  Accessed 19 April 2005.  <http://www.grovemusic.com>

Rosow, Lois, ed.  "Le Théâtre de sa Gloire: Essays on Persée, Tragédie en Musique by Quinault and Lully."  Journal of Seventeenth-Century Music 10, no. 1 (2004)

<http://sscm-jscm.press.uiuc.edu/jscm/v10no1.html>  Includes contributions by Antonia L. Banducci, Benoît Bolduc, François-Pierre Goy, Bruce Gustafson, Rebecca Harris-Warrick, Buford Norman, Ken Pierce and Jennifer Thorp, Gregory Proctor, and Lois Rosow.

See the Lully bibliography for suggested reading.

Reduced score: Typeset title page and Printer's catalog tipped in; body of book engraved. 2°: (±1,2) A-3M1. [(1)]-(4), 1-229. 37 ½ x 26 cm.

M1500 .L95 P47 1722

The first edition of Persée was printed in 1682, the year of the first performance, by Christophe Ballard. The title page of the Persée edition in the Lully Collection describes it as a second edition of 1722 attributed to printer J.-B. C. Ballard, son of Christophe, who died seven years earlier in 1715. However, the volume in the Lully collection is an odd specimen, which may consist of more than one print conflated into a single volume. 

Condition: The present binding, colorful cardboard with dark leather corners and spine, probably dates from the early part of the 20th century. A red morocco paste-on label that appears to be a modern reproduction of the similar labels found on several of the volumes in this collection, has the title, composer and date stamped in gilt. That same re-binding may have been the occasion for other changes to the character of the volume. The typeset title page and printer's catalog that make up the first two leaves appear to have been originally printed on significantly narrower sheets than those in the rest of the text (9 X 14-3/4 inches), cut off, and pasted onto exceptionally wide stubs of laid paper making their size consistent. The pasted-down edges of the tipped-in pages are discolored, indicating that they were damaged before they were cut, and making it unlikely that the paste-down dates from the original printing. 

The engraved main body of the volume is a rather slipshod example of the printer's art. A large percentage of the pages show significant offsets, both from the facing pages and, in at least one case (p.35), from a separate page that appears to have been laid down crosswise while the ink was still wet. The skewed orientation of several of the engraved areas (p.117, for example) indicate that the paper was incorrectly registered when it was placed on the press. Most of the pages show ink spots within the printed area that indicate dirty engraving plates. 

Provenance: The front paste-down endpaper contains a North Texas State College bookplate and a small red Mummery label in the lower left-hand corner. One of the owners--from the hand in the 18th or 19th century--has used the blank endpapers as a ledger.