Teresa Cornelys

Teresa Cornelys (* 1723 in Venice as (Anna Maria) Teresa Imer, † August 19 1797 in London, his first wife, Teresa Pompeati ) was an Italian opera singer and businesswoman. In London she was under the name of Mrs. Cornelys known as operator of the Carlisle House, Soho Square, in which she gave companies, balls and musical performances and well-known musicians such as Johann Christian Bach and Karl Friedrich Abel employed. Horace Walpole described it as " Heidegger of their time ."

A brief love affair she had with Giacomo Casanova, who allegedly had mentioned it several times in his memoirs ( " Story of My Life " ) and father of her daughter. According to him, she was temporarily mistress of the Margrave Friedrich of Brandenburg- Bayreuth and beneficiaries Charles Alexander of Lorraine.

Life

Teresa Imer was probably in 1723 as the daughter of the Genoese actor Giuseppe Imer († 1758) and his wife, born in Venice. Her father was a friend of Carlo Goldoni and known principal. Together with her older sister Marianna she was trained early for the stage, appeared as an actress in intermediate games and got singing lessons.

Since most of the facts about their lives come to 1759 from the memoirs of Casanova, it can not be considered secure than real. Thus he learned it in 1740 in the house of his temporary backer, senator Alvise Gasparo Malipiero ( 1664-1745 ), know that at that time was about 76 years old and in the seventeen- year-old, who lived in an adjoining house of his palace, in love. Casanova describes how he comes close to her in an unguarded moment, the two are caught by the Senator in intimacies, and he is driven by caning by the same out of the house.

Early stage career

According to Casanova's later statement Teresa was not always favored success as a singer only by their talent but by their charms. Her stage career 1741-1754 can be based on track mentions in the cast lists of various opera libretti. Mostly, she was cast as Seconda Donna:

• Verona, 1741 - as Cleopatra in Giulio Cesare in Egitto
• Florence, 1742 - Tito Manlio as Vitellia in, together with her sister
• Padua, 1743 - as Creusa in Demofoonte
• Genoa, 1743 - as Albina in Alessandro Severo and as Araspe in Farasmane re di Tracia, together with her sister
• Turin, 1744 - as Dircea in Demoofonte

On February 2, 1745, she married in Vienna, where she had probably sung in 1744, the actor Angelo Francesco Pompeati (ca. 1701-1768 ), with whom she had a son, Giuseppe ( 1746- ca. 1797). In the season 1745/46 she performed with her ​​sister at the King 's Theatre in London, where Gluck worked as a composer. She created the role of Iride in Gluck's La caduta de Giganti, appeared as Erifile on in Il trionfo della Continenza, in an unknown role in Artamene and as Erissena in Alessandro nel'Indie. Afterwards parted ways the sisters.

Teresa went to Hamburg, where she sang in 1748 Rosmiri Arsace and Irene in Bajazet. Maybe had a role in the premiere of Gluck's La contesa de ' numi, which was held in Copenhagen in 1749. 1750 will be busy in Aristea in L' Olympics in Braunschweig their occupation.

Bayreuth

The course of the following years is mainly known by the mentions of Casanova, but is supported in part by other sources. The temporal information is not without contradictions. The early 1750s Teresa Pompeati was engaged in Bayreuth and was possibly mistress of the Margrave. Her husband, also engaged in Bayreuth, separated at this time from her. In February 1753 she gave birth to a daughter, who was baptized in the name Wilhelmine Friederike and their paternity is sometimes accused of the Margrave. 1754 she sang in Bayreuth Animia in L' Huomo - an opera, with a libretto came from the pen - based Margravine. In Turin, she appeared in the same year as Asteria in Bajazet. According to him, she met Casanova 1753 during their two-week stay in Venice, more likely, however, that he is mistaken, and the meeting took place in 1754. From this brief but intimate encounter allegedly showed a second daughter to the Casanova also known later.

According to Casanova Teresa returned to Bayreuth, where he did not visit her against a promise. After a reported her version, she had been transferred and chased away by the Marquis of an affair with chamberlains Théodore -Camille de Montperny († 1753) and took up with a new lover, the journey to Brussels. More likely, however, that the entire theater staff was released in the fall of 1754 due to an extended trip of Margrave pair, even if Teresa Pompeati is also still out in a 1755 Bayreuth address.

Netherlands

After a stay in Paris from 1754 to 1756 Teresa Pompeati spent the following years in the Netherlands. Casanova reported Charles of Lorraine had a " passing fancy " for she felt and she entrusted with the management of all the theaters in the Austrian Netherlands. Occupation but are merely different theater companies within a Mme Pompeati 1756-1758. In October 1756 they opened a theater in Antwerp and led it with varying success. At the same time, she ran another in Ghent, with its lease payments it but in 1757 fell into the residue and the contract was canceled. Then she went on successfully in Liege. Despite the success it seems to have runiniert financially because they had to go to neighboring Holland, then part of the United Netherlands flee, to escape debtor's prison. Casanova met her there, probably in 1759, where they gave concerts under the name of Mme Trentino and lived in poor circumstances. Your confession that her daughter Sophie, who were with her, having been born of him, probably only served the purpose of obtaining Casanovas support. The paternity is very unlikely for several reasons. Presumably, "Sophie" (d. 1823 as " Sophie Wilhelmine Williams" in London ) is identical to the born in Bayreuth daughter. Even an infant, with the Teresa Pompeati was seen in Paris and whose life data is unknown, can not come from Casanova. However, Casanova was persuaded to her son Giuseppe, who had been retained by creditors as a pledge trigger, and took him to have a better education to Paris.

In Amsterdam was Teresa lover or wife of a businessman from Pittsburgh Jan Cornelis Rijgerboos whose name it (even Cornelis, Cornelles, Corneli, Cornely or Cornelius mostly Cornelys but ) resulted in different spellings from now on. With his financial support, she went to London in 1759. According to Casanova, they ruined him financially.

London

In London teamed Teresa Cornelys with cellist and double bassist John Fermor ( John Freeman ), whom she already knew from the Netherlands and who had promised her the placement useful contacts. This turned out to be worthless. Nevertheless, she found him to be a financier, was with him a few concerts at the Haymarket and worked out a concept for event subscriptions. Since they could not speak English at that time, she used various ladies of high society, to promote support for their projects - including Elizabeth Chudleigh, Elizabeth Percy and Caroline Stanhope.

1760 they rented the Carlisle House, Soho Square, and was from the autumn large companies that were approved only for nobles and guaranteed people who had bought a ticket for five guineas. In addition to dance, masquerades and refreshments probably gambling was the ultimate attraction. The cards never made it in the free sale, but were probably awarded under the hand. Later they increased the price to about nine guineas and gave the cards only in larger amounts of certain lenders from.

Over the following years, Teresa Cornelys expanded with their business. They hired the best musicians and also hosted the daytime concerts. From the season 1763/64 were Johann Christian Bach and Karl Friedrich Abel, from 1767/68 Felice Giardini and Mattia Vento in Carlisle House on. In 1768 she left the premises with precious chinoiserie motifs and a Chinese bridge between the buildings provide. Probably originated this work by Thomas Chippendale, who was also one of its creditors. In 1769 they had more extensive facilities for Cotillons and Allemandes set. In the same year a great festival with illuminations and concert on the occasion of the birthday of the king was placed under the management of the castrato Gaetano Guadagni. Among her guests were highest in those years by members of the British royal family of the Prince of Monaco and the Danish king and his entourage. Celebrities like Horace Walpole and Charles and Fanny Burney visited their events and reported on it.

So glamorous, gorgeous and successful Teresa Cornelys companies also were - financially they came to a personal disaster. Already in the first years she had made much debt that she could never pay off. Instead of creating reserves, they were out of money by the handful and also led costly lawsuits against their creditors - among them John Fermor, with whom she fought for the possession of Carlisle House. When Casanova 1763/64 met with her ​​and her son brought it back, he had at his expense in Paris be educated, she got because of the processes under house arrest. According to him, they took at that time a 24,000 pounds sterling a year, but had spent more than £ 80,000 in the first three years. On February 1, 1768, it signed an agreement with its creditors, that granted her with annual income of £ 20,000 a year still only a personal budget of £ 800. Nevertheless, they continued secretly continue their ruinous course.

The actual error, which caused their complete ruin and the end of the Carlisle House, however, was their involvement in the London opera business, which was approved in 1737 only certain opera houses because of the Licensing Act. Together with Gaetano Guadagni, who had fallen out with the management of the King's Theatre, and the dancer Simon Slingsby led the Carlisle House under the label Harmonic Meetings operas. The performance of Mattia Ventos Artasere in January 1771 called the resistance of other theatrical manager and ultimately the judiciary to the plan, which sentenced them to smaller penalties. In addition, (probably inaccurate ) rumors were launched, after which it too immoral zuginge at their events. Also diatribes against them were circulating at that time.

The bust in the opera business could jump off numerous lenders, and in November 1772 Teresa Cornelys had to explain to their bankruptcy. In December, the inventory of the Carlisle House was sold at bargain prices to the creditors. Teresa was abandoned by her daughter, who now lived on the charity of various nobles. You yourselves were promised an annual annuity of £ 200. Several attempts to continue to organize profitable masked balls in the Carlisle House failed. Your obituary from 1797, according to the following years she lived retired as " Mrs. Smith " in Knightsbridge and made only in the short term through the sale of donkey milk for beauty treatments talked about. Also this business but failed. A short-term financial support of her son, she was unable to keep the debtor's prison, where she died on 19 August 1797.