Operetta

What it means

The operetta is a cheerful form of musical theatre with spoken dialogue between the musical numbers. It arose in the second half of the nineteenth century and combines singing, dance, and acting. Its subjects are entertaining, often satirically coloured, with mistaken identities, love plots, and a conciliatory ending. What distinguishes it from comic opera above all is the spoken dialogue and the closeness to the popular music of its time.

Musical use

Musically the operetta rests on dance forms — waltz, polka, march, later also foxtrot and others —, on catchy melodic writing, and on clear number form with couplets, duets, and ensembles. The demands on the performers are of their own kind: singing, speaking, and movement must be equally mastered, and the effect depends strongly on timing. As a genre, the operetta was long held in low regard, yet its best works are crafted with skill and often contain socially critical undertones beneath the cheerful surface.

Performance practice

Work on dialogue and music together, not separately; the transitions between speaking and singing are the trickiest points and must be rehearsed. Watch for clarity of text and for a speaking voice that does not sit in the throat, so that the singing does not suffer. Keep dance rhythms taut and dance-like rather than heavy. Clarify cuts and versions early, because operettas often exist heavily reworked. Plan your strength, since speaking, singing, and movement together are very demanding.

Bear in mind that the spoken dialogues demand a technique of their own: whoever speaks in the throat harms the singing voice, and whoever speaks too quietly is unintelligible in the hall. Work on a carrying speaking voice and practise the transitions between speaking and singing. With the waltz in the Viennese style, the second beat comes slightly early; clarify this peculiarity with the orchestra. Check whether spoken dialogues are to be adapted for the audience, since many contain topical allusions of their time. Practise the transitions between spoken dialogue and singing, because the voice changes register in doing so.

Check, with arrangements, whether dialogues have been rewritten, because this changes the tone and the references of the work.