Page 225 - Weiss, Jernej, ur./ed. 2021. Opereta med obema svetovnima vojnama ▪︎ Operetta between the Two World Wars. Koper/Ljubljana: Založba Univerze na Primorskem in Festival Ljubljana. Studia musicologica Labacensia, 5
P. 225
oper ettas staged by the slovak national theatr e dur ing the years 1920–1938
The negative attitudes toward Drašar slowly ceased, partly because the
Modern Operetta in Prague closed down in 1935. With that, the profile of
the operetta repertoire of the Slovak National Theatre began to change. The
operations were simplified, there were fewer exchanges between Bratisla-
va and Prague, the sets became less costly, and more scope was given in the
operettas to opera singers, or even to young singers, who were cast main-
ly in operettas. In the Slovak National Theatre, the operetta returned to the
classics and to pieces in which opera singers could shine. The repertoire in-
cluded Nedbal’s Polish Blood, Strauss’s Gypsy Baron and Die Fledermaus,
Lehár’s operettas surprisingly ignored by the previous directors, Giuditta,
Frasquita, The Tsarevich, The Merry Widow, The Count of Luxembourg, The
Land of Smiles, Kálmán’s Circus Princess, Countess Maritza, and Millöck-
er’s Beggar Student. From among contemporary operettas, Frimml’s Rose-
Mary, Beneš’s Z pekla šťastie [Dead Lucky], Stratená varta [Godforsaken],
Na tej lúke zelenej [On that Green Meadow] and U svätého Antoníčka [At
Saint Anthony] were staged.
As the artistic standard was always high, not only J.V. Schöffer but also
opera conductors like Zdeněk Folprecht, Josef Vincourek, Karel Nedbal,
and Ladislav Holoubek were made to rehearse and conduct the operettas.
In total, 65 operettas were staged under Drašar’s directorship until
1938, and their repeats were seldom in single digits. However, the events
of 1938 put an abrupt end to his successful era. With the declaration of the
First Slovak Republic, the Czechs became unwanted, Drašar was arrested
and, after his release, had to leave Slovakia. The Slovak National Theatre be-
came nationalised and a new chapter, in which operettas also played a role,
opened in its history. This, however, is another story.
Bibliography
Ballo, Ivan. “O operete.” Slovenský denník 5, no. 172 (1922): 5.
Bárdiová, Marianna. “Ján Móry a bratislavské inscenácie jeho operiet v prvej
polovici 20. Storočia” [Ján Móry and the Bratislava Stagings of his Oper-
ettas in the First Half of the 20th Century]. In Vybrané štúdie k hudobným
dejinám Bratislavy, edited by Jana Lengová, 117–41. Bratislava: Veda, 2006.
Blaho, Janko. Zo skalického rínku. Bratislava: Tatran 1974.
Blahová-Martišová, Elena, and Ján Jaborník. Súpis repertoáru Slovenského
národného divadla 1920–2010. Bratislava: Slovenské národné divadlo, 2010.
223
The negative attitudes toward Drašar slowly ceased, partly because the
Modern Operetta in Prague closed down in 1935. With that, the profile of
the operetta repertoire of the Slovak National Theatre began to change. The
operations were simplified, there were fewer exchanges between Bratisla-
va and Prague, the sets became less costly, and more scope was given in the
operettas to opera singers, or even to young singers, who were cast main-
ly in operettas. In the Slovak National Theatre, the operetta returned to the
classics and to pieces in which opera singers could shine. The repertoire in-
cluded Nedbal’s Polish Blood, Strauss’s Gypsy Baron and Die Fledermaus,
Lehár’s operettas surprisingly ignored by the previous directors, Giuditta,
Frasquita, The Tsarevich, The Merry Widow, The Count of Luxembourg, The
Land of Smiles, Kálmán’s Circus Princess, Countess Maritza, and Millöck-
er’s Beggar Student. From among contemporary operettas, Frimml’s Rose-
Mary, Beneš’s Z pekla šťastie [Dead Lucky], Stratená varta [Godforsaken],
Na tej lúke zelenej [On that Green Meadow] and U svätého Antoníčka [At
Saint Anthony] were staged.
As the artistic standard was always high, not only J.V. Schöffer but also
opera conductors like Zdeněk Folprecht, Josef Vincourek, Karel Nedbal,
and Ladislav Holoubek were made to rehearse and conduct the operettas.
In total, 65 operettas were staged under Drašar’s directorship until
1938, and their repeats were seldom in single digits. However, the events
of 1938 put an abrupt end to his successful era. With the declaration of the
First Slovak Republic, the Czechs became unwanted, Drašar was arrested
and, after his release, had to leave Slovakia. The Slovak National Theatre be-
came nationalised and a new chapter, in which operettas also played a role,
opened in its history. This, however, is another story.
Bibliography
Ballo, Ivan. “O operete.” Slovenský denník 5, no. 172 (1922): 5.
Bárdiová, Marianna. “Ján Móry a bratislavské inscenácie jeho operiet v prvej
polovici 20. Storočia” [Ján Móry and the Bratislava Stagings of his Oper-
ettas in the First Half of the 20th Century]. In Vybrané štúdie k hudobným
dejinám Bratislavy, edited by Jana Lengová, 117–41. Bratislava: Veda, 2006.
Blaho, Janko. Zo skalického rínku. Bratislava: Tatran 1974.
Blahová-Martišová, Elena, and Ján Jaborník. Súpis repertoáru Slovenského
národného divadla 1920–2010. Bratislava: Slovenské národné divadlo, 2010.
223
