Nicolas-Médard Audinot

Nicolas-Médard Audinot (Bourmont-en-Bassigny, 1732 – Paris, 1801) was a central figure in Parisian theatrical life in the eighteenth century, straddling singing, theatre management and playwriting. His name is sometimes given as Odinot or Oudinot, and his importance lies chiefly in the popular theatre of the capital.

He began as a singer at the Opéra-Comique, excelling in roles depicting artisans. After the initial failure of his comic opera Le tonnelier, premiered at the Foire Saint-Laurent in 1761, he joined the Comédie-Italienne in 1762. In 1765 the work was revived with new ariettas and ensembles by various composers, enjoying considerable success in France, the Netherlands and Germany.

After leaving the Comédie-Italienne in 1767, he became one of the leading impresarios in Paris. In 1769 he opened the Théâtre de l'Ambigu-Comique, which he ran until 1796. His management was marked by constant conflict with the authorities and by the employment of children and adolescents in circumstances now regarded as morally questionable.

His legacy is ambivalent. The Ambigu's repertoire moved from crude farces to moral dramas and heroic and romantic pantomimes in the 1780s. His musical contribution is hard to assess, although composers such as Botson, André-Jean Rigade and Papavoine worked there regularly in the 1770s.