O Beijo

The lyrical farce O beijo (The Kiss), by Angelo Frondoni, presented at the Teatro da Rua dos Condes in November 1844, is considered the first Portuguese comic opera. In the years preceding this premiere, at that same theatre, the first productions of French comic operas translated into Portuguese had been heard, at the initiative of the then director Émille Doux and the Conde de Farrobo (the theatre’s impresario). The foreign direction of Doux and the investment in the comic genre were the target of various criticisms, but in 1843, when the director installed his company at the Teatro do Salitre, the doors were open for operetta to occupy a new space in Portuguese cultural life¹.

According to the poet responsible for the text of O beijo, José Maria da Silva Leal, the idea of creating a small-scale piece, with only 1 act, in the Portuguese language was Frondoni’s own². The work was a success and would be heard on numerous occasions throughout the 44/45 and 45/46 seasons – both inside the theatre and in the streets – and was the subject of much critical praise. The press recognised in Frondoni’s composition the ability to reveal «the taste of our popular songs» and to develop a genre that was «light, amusing, pleasant», fitting the Portuguese context, and relatively autonomous from the French vaudeville and from Italian influences³.