Esther Chevalier

Esther Chevalier (13 September 1853, Montrouge, – 1936) was a French mezzo-soprano, active in Paris almost exclusively at the Opéra-Comique, appearing in several operatic premieres there.
Chevalier was pupil of Saint-Yves Bax, and won first prizes at the Paris Conservatoire in both vocal studies and opéra comique.
She made her debut at the Opéra-Comique on 6 October 1873 as Angèle in "Le domino noir" and went on to create many roles, such as Mercédès in "Carmen", Manette in "La chambre bleue", La duègne in "La Fille de Tabarin", Javotte in "Manon", Herminie in "La soeur de Jocrisse", la balayeuse in "Louise", and Prudence in "Xavière", as well as Meg in the French premiere of "Falstaff" in 1894. Her other roles at the Salle Favart included Nicklause in "Les contes d'Hoffmann", Jenny in "La dame blanche", Louise in "Le déserteur", Rose Friquet in "Les dragons de Villars", the title role in "Mignon", Taven in "Mireille", une fée in "La flute enchantée", Myrza in "Lalla-Roukh", Marguérite in "Le Pré aux clercs", Laurette in "Richard Coeur-de-lion" and Rita in "Zampa".
Chevalier sang the title role of "Carmen" at the Opéra-Comique in 1892, having previously sung it in Dieppe.
Malherbe described Chevalier as an intelligent artist, who was invaluable to her company over many years, tackling a broad range of roles from grand ladies to soubrettes, and making a mark even in the smallest roles.