Simplicius (operetta)

Simplicius is an operetta by Johann Strauss II. It was conceived from the work of HJC von Grimmelhausen titled Der abenteuerliche Simplicissimus or simply Adventurous Simplicissimus, which was opined by many to be the 17th century's greatest German novel. The libretto for this work was furnished by Victor Léon who was one of Vienna's promising talents of that era, with music by Johann Strauss II.

The operetta received its premiere at the Theater an der Wien on 17 December 1887 and was nearly marred by a false fire alert in the theatre. The audience of the first night clearly remembered the theatre tragedy of the Ringtheater inferno in Vienna six years earlier and the false alarm nearly triggered a stampede. Strauss' good friend Viktor Tilgner later recounted that the composer's quick thinking avoided a tragedy as he directed one of the actors to sing a popular number Ich denke gern zurück an mein entschwundnes Glück waltz romance song from the final Act again to divert the audience's attention. This waltz song was to later become the first waltz theme of his popular "Donauweibchen", Op. 427 ("Danube Maiden").

This operetta is largely forgotten today, although its music is still performed at length. Its music was also probably survived by the many individual pieces that Johann Strauss II produced from the original score among them Donauweibchen mentioned above as well as "Reitermarsch", Op. 428, and the polka-mazurka "Lagerlust", Op. 431.

Overview: When Wendelin von Grübben tells his younger brother Bruno that they both love the same woman, Bruno abandons the Catholic faith, joins the heretics and is killed in battle by Wendelin. Full of remorse, Wendelin sends his own son (Arnim) and wife (Countess von Vliessen) to a religious house, despite her having just borne Simplicius, their second son. Wendelin decides not to kill himself and Simplicius but to retreat into the forest with his son, vowing to protect him from worldly influences. The Countess dies. Her will declares that the Grübben family fortune can only be inherited with the betrothal of a Grübben and another Countess von Vliessen. Otherwise the entire estate goes to the Church. Arnim leaves the religious house, and with Wendelin and Simplicius missing, it is eventually assumed that the family has died out, though there is no firm proof.

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