Alexandre aux Indes
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Alexandre aux Indes (Alexander in India) is an opera by the French composer Nicolas-Jean Lefroid de Méreaux, first performed at the Académie Royale de Musique (the Paris Opera) on 26 August 1783. It takes the form of a tragédie lyrique in three acts. The libretto, by Étienne Morel de Chédeville, concerns Alexander the Great and the Indian king Porus. The plot has similarities with Racine's tragedy Alexandre le Grand (1665) and Metastasio's libretto Alessandro nell'Indie.
| Cast | Voice type | Premiere |
|---|---|---|
| Alexandre (Alexander the Great), King of Macedon and conqueror of the Persians | haute-contre | Étienne Lainez |
| Porus, king of one part of India | basse-taille (bass-baritone) | Henri Larrivée |
| Axiane, queen of another part of India | soprano | Marie Thérèse Davoux Maillard |
| Ephestion (Hephaestion), Alexander's confidant and ambassador | tenor | Jean-Joseph Rousseau[1] |
| Gandartès, Porus' confidant | baritone | François Lays |
| Le grand prêtre de Bacchus (the high priest of Bacchus) | bass-baritone | Auguste-Athanase (Augustin) Chéron |
| Une dame indienne (an Indian lady) | soprano | Anne-Marie Jeanne Gavaudan, l'ainée (the elder) |
| Un capitaine grec (a Greek captain) | bass-baritone | Moreau |
| Six femmes de la suite d'Axiane (six women followers of Axiane) | soprano | Châteauvieux, Marie-Anne Thaunat, Gertrude Girardin, Rosalie, Josephine, Adelaïde Gavaudan cadette (the younger) |
| Un officier grec (a Greek officer) | tenor | Dufrenai (also spelled Dufrenaye or Dufresnay) |
| Un officier indien (an Indian officer) | baritone | Louis-Claude-Armand Chardin ("Chardiny") |
| Chorus: Greek warriors, Indian warriors, Indian peoples | ||