The Last Savage

The Last Savage is an opera in three acts by composer Gian Carlo Menotti. Menotti wrote his own libretto, originally in the Italian language (L'ultimo selvaggio). The opera was translated into French (Le dernier sauvage) by Jean-Pierre Marty for the work's first (private) performance at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on 21 October 1963, followed the next day by the public premiere. George Mead translated the work into English for the opera's American premiere at the Metropolitan Opera the following year.

The opera was originally intended for the larger Paris Opéra, and the title was changed during from The Last Superman to The Wild Man then to its final form. Menotti went back to his own Italian language in composing the libretto, but the premiere was in French; Menotti was also the producer of the premiere production. Opera magazine congratulated him and the conductor for “a beautifully thought-out and executed performance” which was “enormously applauded with one solitary boo-er”.

However, The Last Savage was harshly ridiculed by French music critics, continuing a succession of critical failures for Menotti which began with The Unicorn, the Gorgon, and the Manticore (1956). The French daily newspaper Le Figaro went so far as to describe the work as "A Misery".

Despite the response from the French public, Menotti hoped that the opera would get a warmer reception at its American premiere at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City on 23 January 1964. This presentation boasted a highly elaborate set by Beni Montresor, star billing, and was performed in English using a translation by George Mead. Conductor Thomas Schippers led the Met cast, which included George London as Abdul, Roberta Peters as Kitty, Teresa Stratas as Sardula, Nicolai Gedda as Kodanda, Ezio Flagello as Maharajah, Lili Chookasian as Maharanee, and Morley Meredith as Scattergood. Though the quality of the singing was praised by critics, New York's response to the opera was negative.

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