as Djémil in
La Source, Paris, 1866 The choreography was by
Arthur Saint-Léon, who collaborated with
Charles Nuitter in the libretto. The original designs were by
Édouard Desplechin,
Jean-Baptiste Lavastre,
Auguste Rubé,
Chaperon (sets) and
Paul Lormier (costumes). The first production opened at the
Théâtre Impérial de l´Opéra in Paris on 12 November 1866, with
Guglielmina Salvioni (Naïla),
Eugenie Fiocre (Nouredda) and
Louis Mérante (Djémil) in the principal roles. The production was not particularly successful, Salvioni being considered unsuited to the rôle of Naïla. It triumphed in the following year, however, with Adèle Grantzow as Naïla, and remained a mainstay of the repertory for the next few years. A successful revival in 1872 showcased
Rita Sangalli in the principal rôle, and it was for this production that the new variations for Naïla were introduced, the music most likely by Delibes himself (Nos. 12b and 23a in the list of musical numbers in the piano score, see below). Delibes was second chorus master at the
Paris Opera and had until then written operettas, songs and sacred music. A comparison of the music of the two composers greatly favoured Delibes, whose contributions were considered "fresh and more rhythmic", with one critic suggesting that the whole ballet score should have been assigned to Delibes.
La source was his first big success, marking him as an important composer for the ballet.
La source was produced in
St Petersburg in 1902 with
Olga Preobrajenska as Naïla, choreographed by
Achille Coppini. In 1907
Nijinsky made his solo debut in the last act of
La source at the
Mariinsky. The ballet was revived in 1925 by
Agrippina Vaganova to the
Theatre of Opera and Ballet in Leningrad to her pupil
Marina Semyonova – Marina Semyonova started to work on the scene from this ballet. A video of the
La source pas de deux taken from the 2008 graduation performance of the
Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet at the
Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg, may be found on YouTube, with the choreography credited to
Konstantin Sergeyev after Coppini and possibly created for Preobrajenskaya. The music is by
Riccardo Drigo, composer of most of the additional dances added to the company's repertory in the early 20th century. ==Synopsis==