La belle Hélène

Opera

Writers: Jacques Offenbach Ludovic Halevy Henri Meilhac

Songs

Act One

  • Introduction
  • No. 1a Chorus ‘Vers tes autels, Jupin’
  • No. 1b Chorus of the Young Girls ‘C’est le devoir des jeunes filles’ - Hélène, Chorus
  • No. 2 Aria ‘Amours divines, ardentes flammes’ - Helene, Chorus
  • No. 3 Couplets ‘Au cabaret du labyrinthe’ - Oreste, Calchas, Parthenis, Loena, Chorus
  • No. 3b Exit of Oreste ‘Tzing la la’ - Oreste, Chorus
  • No. 4 Melodrama and Dialogue ‘Quoi?’ - Calchas, Paris
  • No. 5 Melodrama and Dialogue ‘Homme de vingt ans’ - Calchas, Paris
  • No. 6 The Judgement of Paris ‘Au mont Ida’ - Paris
  • No. 7a March ‘Voici les Roise de la Grèce’ - Chorus
  • No. 7b Couplets of the Kings ‘Ves Roise remplis de vaillance’ - Ajax I, Ajax II, Oreste, Calcas, Chorus, Achille, Menelaus Agamemnon
  • No. 8 Finale ‘Gloire, gloire!’ - Oreste, Parthenis, Loena, Menelaus, Achille, Ajax I, Ajax II, Agamemnon, Calchas, Chorus, Paris, Helen

Act Two

  • No. 9 Entr’acte
  • No. 10 Chorus ‘O Reine, en ce jour’ - Helene, Bacchis, Chorus
  • No. 11 Invocation to Venus ‘On me nomme Helene la blonde’ - Helene
  • No. 12 March of the Goose ‘Le voici, le Roi des Rois’ - Helene, Bacchis, Oreste, Achille, Ajax I, Ajax II, Agamemnon, Calchas
  • No. 13 Scene and game of the goose ‘Vous le voyez, j’ai trois’ - Helene, Baccis, Oreste, Achille, Ajax I, Ajax II, Agamemnon, Calchas
  • No. 14 Couplet ‘En couronnes tressons les roses’ - Oreste, Chorus
  • No. 15 Duet of Dreams ‘C’est le Ciel qui m’envoie’ - Helene, Paris
  • No. 16a Final ‘A moi, Roise de la Grèce’ - Helene, Oreste, Bacchis, Paris, Menelaus, Achille, Ajax I, Ajax II, Agamemnon, Calchas, Chorus
  • No. 16b Couplets ‘Un mari sage’- Helene, Oreste, Bacchis, Paris, Menelaus, Achille, Ajax I, Ajax II, Agamemnon, Calchas, Chorus

Act Three

  • No. 17 Entr’act
  • No. 18a Chorus ‘Dansons, aimons’ - Chorus, Oreste
  • No. 18b Rondo ‘Venus, au fond de nos ames’ - Oreste, Partheins, Loena, Achille, Chorus
  • No. 19 Couplets ‘La vrai! Je ne suis pas’ - Helene
  • No. 20 Patriotic Trio ‘Lorsque la Grece’ - Menelaus, Agamemnon, Calchas
  • No. 21a Chorus ‘La galere de Cythere’ - Chorus
  • No. 21b Tyrolese with Choir ‘Et tout d’abord, o vile multitude’ - Paris, Oreste, Parthenis, Loena, Menelaus, Achille, Ajax I, Ajax II, Agamemnon, Calchas, Chorus
  • No. 22 Finale ‘Elle vient, c’est elle’ - Oreste, Parthenis, Loena, Achille, Paris, Ajax I, Ajax II, Agamemnon, Calchas, Helene

A song with an asterisk (*) before the title indicates a dance number; a character listed in a song with an asterisk (*) by the character's name indicates that the character exclusively serves as a dancer in this song, which is sung by other characters.


La belle Hélène guide sections