Editing Manon (section)

==Background==
The first [[theatrical adaptation]] of ''Manon Lescaut'' was in 1772,{{Sfn|Sgard|1995|p=187}} a comedy entitled ''The Virtuous Courtesan'' ({{Langx|fr|La Courtisane vertueuse}}).{{Sfn|Sgard|1995|p=178}} The first operatic adaptation, in 1836, was not a success,{{Sfn|Sgard|1995|p=191}} but after 1853, six operas based on ''Manon Lescaut'' were produced.{{Sfn|Sgard|1995|p=192}} Auber's opéra-comique version ''Manon Lescaut'' of 1856 was the first in the genre with a tragic death, foreshadowing ''[[Carmen]]''.<ref>Schneider, Herbert. Manon Lescaut (i). ''[[The New Grove Dictionary of Opera]]'', Macmillan, London and New York, 1997, Vol.3 p.190.</ref>

According to chapter XV of Massenet's ''Souvenirs'', visiting the librettist Henri Meilhac at his house at 30 rue Druout in the autumn of 1881, sitting in the library full of rare and valuable books, while Meilhac was writing Massenet spotted a book in the library and exclaimed "Manon", pointing to it <<...Manon, m'ecrai-je, en montrant du doigt le livre à Meilhac. >> Meilhac replied "you want Manon Lescaut" to which Massenet responded "No, Manon, just Manon" << Non, Manon, Manon tout court... >> Early drafts came within a few days.<ref>Catherine Massip. Manon et l'influence musicale du XVIIIe siecle. In: ''Massenet et l'Opéra-Comique.'' Publications de l'Université de Saint-Etienne, 2015, p.49.</ref> The composer worked at the score of ''Manon'' at his country home outside Paris and also at a house at [[The Hague]] once occupied by Prévost himself.{{sfn|Harding|1970|pp=75–76}} During 1882, Massenet worked closely with the two librettists Gille and Meilhac, and finished the piano score in the latter part of the year, with orchestration complete by the summer of 1883.<ref>[[Rodney Milnes|Milnes, Rodney]]. Manon. ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'', Macmillan, London and New York, 1997, Vol.3 p.188.</ref>