In March 1672, Lully took over the exclusive royal patent of the Académie d'Opéra from the poet Pierre Perrin. This gave Lully total control over operatic activity at Versailles and in Paris, marking the start of a period that would witness the production of 13 operas over the next 15 years. Alceste was the second of these operas, termed by their composer tragédies en musique. All conform to the standard form of a prologue featuring allegorical characters and obsequious praise of the monarch, followed by five acts. The librettist of Alceste (and indeed all but two of Lully's operas) was the poet Philippe Quinault, who, in keeping with French seventeenth century theatrical tradition, fashioned his book on a Classical theme, the subject, in this instance, being drawn from Euripides' Alcestis. "A rehearsal of Alceste was enthusiastically received by the king and his courtiers in November 1673, but the first public performance was accompanied by a cabal of musicians and poets opposed to Lully's ever-increasing power."

All Lully's tragédies en musique consist of a flexible juxtaposition of the French recitative he had developed after carefully observing the declamation of the French language in the lyric theater, and arias following the long tradition of the air de cour, the two constituents often alternating seamlessly. The character of Lully's operas is therefore markedly different from Italian opera, which at this period was increasingly being divided into clearly demarcated "closed" sections—recitative and aria. Three other crucial elements mark the difference between Italian opera and those of Lully: the inclusion of dance in interpolated divertissements, and the important role given to the orchestra and chorus, the latter by this stage absent in Italian opera.

Following the Prologue in which Louis XIV is praised for his military exploits, the story of Alceste follows that of the noble actions of Queen Alcestis, who, in response to a call from Apollo, is prepared to achieve immortal glory by going to Hades in the place of her mortally wounded husband, Admetus. She does so and her funeral obsequies are performed in one of Lully's most impressive tableaux (Act Three), a huge pantomime featuring the chorus and dance. The following act, set on the banks of the River Acheron, contains a famous air for Charon, the boatman of the Styx, and some of Lully's most colorful dramatic effects. In the final act, and in keeping with the convention of happy endings, Alcestis is released from Hades by Hercules, who acting the part of deus ex machina allows the royal couple to remain together. Despite the cabal mounted against it, Alceste was a success, its heroic and spectacular effects winning the day. Nevertheless, it is not today considered one of Lully's best operas.

© Brian Robins, All Music Guide