Alexandre Dumas fils live with his father. There he met Marie Duplessis, a young courtesan who would be the inspiration for the character Marguerite Gauthier in his romantic novel "La Dame aux camélias" ("The Lady of the Camellias"). Adapted into a play, it was titled "Camille" in English and became the basis for Verdi's 1853 opera, "La traviata", Duplessis undergoing yet another name change, this time to Violetta Valéry. Although he admitted that he had done the adaptation because he needed the money, he had great success with the play, which started his career as a dramatist. He was not only more renowned
La descente d'Orphée aux enfers La descente d'Orphée aux enfers La descente d'Orphée aux enfers (English: "The Descent of Orpheus to the Underworld") is a chamber opera in two acts by the French composer Marc-Antoine Charpentier. It was probably composed in early 1686 and probably was performed either in the private apartment of the Dauphin that spring, or at Fontainebleau in the autumn. Charpentier himself sung the title role and was joined by the musicians of Mademoiselle de Guise and the members of the Dauphin's little ensemble. This was Charpentier's last appearance with the Guise ensemble. The libretto, whose author is unknown, is based on