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La Juive

Fromental Halévy’s La Juive was one of the most popular operas of the 19th century. The libretto was written by Eugène Scribe, a prolific author who wrote for the Opéra de Paris, where La Juive was first performed.

The five acts of the opera present spectacular situations (such as the Council of Constance of 1414), which allowed for a flamboyant staging in a setting that brought out a dramatic situation underlined by a powerful historical subject, complete with choral interludes, ballet and scenic effects which showcased the resources available at the Paris Opera.

La Juive, which follows the story of the impossible love between a Christian man and a Jewish woman, has been seen as a plea for religious tolerance (a common underlying theme in other works by Scribe and Halévy, both Jewish), in much the same spirit as Meyerbeer's Les Huguenots, which premiered one year after La Juive, and the 1819 novel Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott.