Geneviève-Aimé-Zoë Prévost (15 April 1802, Paris – 10 April 1861, Paris) was a French operatic soprano. ^[1] She created leading roles in some of the most notable French opéras comiques of the first half of the nineteenth century, including " Fra Diavolo" by Daniel Auber and " Le postillon de Lonjumeau" by Adolphe Adam.

Career

Geneviève-Aimé-Zoë Prévost, also known as Zoé Prévost, had a younger brother, Eugene, who was a composer and conductor. Zoé studied singing at the Paris Conservatoire and made her debut at the Opéra-Comique, Paris, in 1821. ^[2] The Opéra-Comique at that time presented operas light in tone and with spoken dialogue between the musical numbers. She created leading roles in many opéras comiques including the title role in " La marquise de Brinvilliers", a collaborative work between nine composers, and in works by Fromental Halévy, Ambroise Thomas, and others. Considered one of the major stars of the lyric stage of her day, ^[3] Prévost was esteemed for her unaffected stage presence, her charm of person and manner, her skills as a comic actress, and her excellent singing technique. ^[2] She created the leading soprano roles in two opéras comiques still performed today, Zerlina in " Fra Diavolo" by Auber in 1830 and Madeleine in " Le postillon de Lonjumeau" by Adam in 1836, the most successful works of those two composers. In the latter work, as in others, she appeared opposite her husband, leading tenor Jean-Baptiste Chollet, by whom she had one daughter, Caroline, who also achieved success as a singer under the stage name Mademoiselle Monrose. Geneviève-Aimé-Zoë Prévost also appeared in other French and Belgian opera houses.

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