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Opera

When the Fat Lady Sings

La Bohème : An Opera in Four Acts (by Giacomo Puccini)
Madama Butterfly (Mala Dobrodïka Metelyk... (by Puccini, Giacomo)
Carmen : Opera in Four Acts (by Georges Bizet)
The Magic Flute (by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
The Phantom of the Opera (by Leroux, Gaston)
Porgy (by Heyward, Du Bose)
Don Giovanni (Don Juan) : A Comic Opera ... (by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)

Plays and puppet shows existed for centuries before 1598 when Jacopo Peri unleashed Dafne in Florence, Italy. The classical drama of Apollo’s pursuit of the dryad Daphne set to music and song ignited a passion that spread through all Europe, with many countries embossing their own stamps upon the new art form of opera.

Influential writer-composers included Heinrich Schütz in Germany, Jean Baptiste Lully in France, and Henry Purcell in England. Regardless of regional influences, however, Italian opera reigned supreme throughout Europe, except in France.

The prestige of opera attracted both actors and composers such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to its contrived, artificial, and melodramatic entertainment, although he remains best known for his comedic operas, such as the Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni, and The Magic Flute. The noble and serious style of opera seria held sway in prestige until the 1760s, when fashion shifted to the comedy of opera buffa, which abandoned the opulent drama for common settings, local dialects, and simple vocals.

Early 19th century tastes in operatic entertainment next shifted to the bel canto style of opera. This style found its popularity in Gioachino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti, and Vincenzo Bellini. Their works are still performed today. In the mid to late 1800s, the grand opera commanded popular attention with several acts, lavish sets, large casts, and full orchestras. This is the operatic style exemplified in the first act of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s extravagant movie production of Phantom of the Opera, based on the 1910 novel written by Gaston Leroux. Popular writer-composers of grand opera included Daniel François Esprit Auber, Giacomo Meyerbeer, Giuseppe Verdi, Siegfried Wagner, and Richard Wagner. Russia and eastern European countries developed their own operatic traditions during this time.

Opera’s popularity began to wane in the 20th century, particularly with the advent of radio and vinyl records putting a larger selection of musical forms to the ready access of all classes of people. The 20th century witnessed short-lived variations in opera, such as atonality and serialism, both used within Weber’s Phantom of the Opera.

Today, opera occupies a highbrow reputation among the general populace and remains readily accessible via high-definition streaming technology, television broadcasts, and even CDs. Its association with Italian, German, and French languages tends to dissuade those who cannot speak those languages from sampling the delights of this venerable, stylized art form. Hollywood and other film production centers, still venture into opera with movies such as Carmen: A Hip Hopera based on Carmen by Georges Bizet, M. Butterfly based on Madama Butterfly and Rent based on La bohème by Giacomo Puccini, and Porgy and Bess based on the George Gershwin’s 1935 opera which was based on the 1925 novel Porgy by Heyward Du Bose.

By Karen M. Smith