Candeille, Julie (1767–1834)
Candeille, Julie (1767–1834)>
French singer, actress, and composer who wrote music and scripts for plays as well as six novels, several on historical topics. Born Amélie Julie in Paris, France, on July 31, 1767; died in Paris on February 4, 1834; married to Jean Simons from 1798–1821.
Julie Candeille's father, who educated her, claimed his daughter was endowed with great talent, an observation that would prove correct over her multifaceted career. By age 13, she had already appeared in public as a composer and a pianist. At age 15, in 1782, she sang the title role in Gluck's Iphigénie en Aulide. By age 18, she was an established actress at the Comédie Française. Her greatest success as a singer and actress was in Catherine, ou La belle fermiére, which ran for 154 performances in 1792–93; Candeille wrote both the text and music. Over the next 35 years, she would revive this role many times. Though not as successful as Catherine, she also wrote Bathilde, ou Le duc, Le commissionnaire, La bayadère ou Le Français à Surate, and Louise, ou La réconcilliation. Her most important work for the stage was Ida, ou L'orpheline de Berlin, a two-act opéra comique given in 1807. In addition to writing plays, Julie Candeille composed music, mainly for the piano, and wrote novels, many on historical topics.