Julie-Rose Calvé was born in Rennes in 1815, in the Toussaints church district. She lives in poverty with her mother, the widow of an officer, who gave birth to her when she was still a teenager. When the latter can no longer provide for her needs, she sends her to boarding school in Toulouse. There, Julie-Rose was spotted by the composer Rossini, who admitted her to the conservatory. The beauty of her soprano voice opens up all artistic destinies for her: it will be in Louisiana, in New Orleans. [À retrouver en intégralité dans le 3e volume des Histoires Extraordinaires Rennaises].
She was hired by John Davis, of French origin and director of the Théâtre d'Orléans, for the 1837-1838 season. This brought both its actors and its sets and costumes from Europe. Julie-Rose took the name Julia Calvé and very quickly acquired the status of a rising star in the opera capital of North America. She is nicknamed “the precious singer”. Newspapers of the time note that she often fainted, sometimes on stage, perhaps weakened by the local climate. Which doesn't stop the theater's main soprano from returning to the stage. “The show must go on”.
The American adventure
Opened in 1815, the Théâtre d'Orléans is the city's best-known opera house. During his first five years, he produced around 150 operas. People rush to see troops from Paris. It was replaced in 1859 by the French Opera House, on Bourbon Street, in the French Quarter.
Its public reflects the very cosmopolitan city: all social classes and origins are found in this nerve center of social life. New Orleans boasts the nation's first permanent opera company. The American premieres of recognized French and Italian operas are created there. For the French community, opera is the symbol of its own cultural difference.
Success
The heat and humidity of Louisiana prevent any performance during the summer. The troupe therefore organizes tours in the northeast. Fighting despite apparently fragile health, Julia Calvé discovered Boston, Philadelphia, New York and Montreal. Over the course of an eleven-year career, she has played, among others, in Le Postillon de Longjumeau, Le Domino noir and Don Pasquale.
In 1846, a local newspaper proudly considered the prima donna as the “favorite singer of the French and Creole population” of New Orleans. In the 1880s, Rennaise became a respected singing teacher who trained some of the best opera artists in North America and Europe. She died at age 82, known as one of the best actresses of the golden age of New Orleans theater. Since 2017, an esplanade has borne his name, within the Octroi islet, in the Bourg-Levesque district.
