Opera
Lorenzo Da Ponte supplied composers with over 40 librettos, including "Cosi fan tutte" for this man
W.A. Mozart
Operas by this composer include "Cosi Fan Tutte" & "The Magic Flute"
W.A. Mozart
This Austrian composer's 1790 opera "Cosi Fan Tutte" is set in 18th c. Naples
W.A. Mozart
This Austrian was just 14 when he composed his 1770 opera "Mitridate, Re Di Ponto"
W.A. Mozart
This poet whose initials stood for Wystan Hugh co-authored the libretto for Henze's opera "The Bassarids"
W.H. Auden
"Twilight of the Gods" is the last part of this composer's "Ring" cycle
Wagner
Guinness says the longest commonly performed opera is his "Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg"
Wagner
He wrote Brunhilde's immolation, opera's longest aria of nearly 15 minutes
Wagner
His opera "Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg" was inspired by Hans Sachs, who wrote more than 4,200 Meisterlieder
Wagner
The Festspielhaus in Bayreuth, Germany was built as a place for this composer to stage his operas
Wagner
This composer of the opera "Siegfried" named his only son Siegfried
Wagner
Puccini: "The Girl of the Golden ____"
West
This term for the principal female singer of an opera company is Italian for "first lady"
prima donna
We're not stringing you along: "El Retablo de Maese Pedro" is meant to be peformed by these toys
puppets
In "The English Cat", a cat is a president of the R.S.P.R.--The Royal Society for Protection of these rodents
rats
Tenor Leo Slezak covered a staging mistake in "Lohengrin" by ad-libbing, "What time is the next" this graceful bird
swan
Gian Carlo Menotti's 1963 opera "Labyrinth" was written for this medium
television
Handel's "Berenice, Queen of Egypt" took a hiatus from the stage from the first part of this century to 1985
the 18th century
In "Johnny Strikes Up", a violin performance at the North Pole inspires the whole world to do this 1920s dance
the Charleston
The Catholic Marguerite de Valois is a pivotal character in the 1836 opera named for these French Protestants
the Huguenots
Act IV of the opera "Moses in Egypt" features the miraculous parting of this sea
the Red Sea
The first part of Wagner's "Ring" cycle takes place on this river
the Rhine
The seductive Queen of Shemakha sings a "Hymn to" this heavenly body in "Le Coq d'Or"
the Sun
Bennelong Point, the site of this opera house, was home to several Aboriginal clans when Europeans arrived
the Sydney Opera House
In 1973 the Australian opera's production of Prokofiev's "War and Peace" was the first performance at this landmark
the Sydney Opera House
In a comic opera by Menotti, Lucy is addicted to talking on this invention--does that ring a "bell"?
the telephone
"Masculine Singular Ablative in Latin for Faithful or True"
Fidelio
Fragments of the "Ode to Joy" appear in the libretto of this 1805 opera, the composer's only one
Fidelio
In a Beethoven opera, Leonore disguises herself as this boy
Fidelio
In this Beethoven opera, Leonore gives the weak, imprisoned Florestan some bread
Fidelio
This Beethoven opera features the wonderful quartet "Mir ist so wunderbar"
Fidelio
This Beethoven opera was based on a play called "Leonore"
Fidelio
This Beethoven opera was originally titled "Leonore"
Fidelio
"The Marriage of" this servant of Count Almaviva was once banned in France lest it incite the lower classes to revolt
Figaro
He was "The Barber of Seville" prior to becoming Count Almaviva's valet
Figaro
He's the local barber & general busybody in an 1816 Rossini opera
Figaro
In an 1816 opera, he's the Barber of Seville
Figaro
The "marriage" of this character to Susanna takes place in Count Almaviva's chateau
Figaro
She wrote the libretto for "The Mother of Us All"; maybe that's why it features a character named "Gertrude S."
Gertrude Stein
"Il Trittico" -- "The Triptych" -- is a trilogy of one-act operas by this composer of "Tosca"
Giacomo Puccini
"The Witches", the 1st opera by this composer of "Madama Butterfly", may be based on the ballet "Giselle"
Giacomo Puccini
Maria Callas was noted for her passionate performance in this composer's "Tosca"
Giacomo Puccini
Minnie runs a saloon in a California mining camp in this Italian composer's opera "The Girl of the Golden West"
Giacomo Puccini
This "Turandot" composer's opera "Sister Angelica" is set in a convent & has an all-female cast
Giacomo Puccini
"Pineapple Poll" is a ballet with music from works by this "Pinafore" pair
Gilbert & Sullivan
"Princess Ida" is "A respectful operatic per-version of Tennyson's 'Princess' " by this duo
Gilbert & Sullivan
In 1829, after his move to Paris, this Italian composer wrote "William Tell"
Gioachino Rossini
Be on the alert: "Alerta! Alerta!", one of his longest bass arias, appears in his opera "Il Trovatore"
Giuseppe Verdi
Composer who turned Victor Hugo's play "Le Roi S'Amuse" into "Rigoletto"
Giuseppe Verdi
He was in his 70s when he composed "Otello" in 1887 & "Falstaff" in 1893
Giuseppe Verdi
His "Il Trovatore" contains the "Anvil Chorus", a favorite of male choirs the world over
Giuseppe Verdi
Originally, this composer's opera "Rigoletto" was titled "La Maledizione" ("The Curse")
Giuseppe Verdi
This composer's "Rigoletto" is based on Victor Hugo's play "Le Roi S'Amuse" ("The King Amuses Himself")
Giuseppe Verdi
Swiss composer Heinrich Sutermeister wrote a 1967 opera based on this author's "Madame Bovary"
Gustave Flaubert
Dick Deadeye, a sailor; Admiral Sir Joseph Porter; Captain Corcoran
H.M.S. Pinafore
In "Die Tote Stadt", Marietta has more than a brush with death: she's strangled with this from a dead woman
Hair
"Amleto"
Hamlet
Ambroise Thomas' opera about this man differs from Shakespeare's play; in the opera, he becomes king of Denmark
Hamlet
"Ib and Little Christina" & "The Emperor's New Clothes" are operas based on his fairy tales
Hans Christian Andersen
As a student, film composer Nino Rota based an opera on this Dane's fairy tale "The Prince And The Swineherd"
Hans Christian Andersen
It's no fairy tale: Elvis Costello wrote & starred in a 2005 opera about this Danish fairy tale author
Hans Christian Andersen
Numerous operas, including "The Little Match Girl", have been based on this Dane's fairy tales
Hans Christian Andersen
Angels guard this duo while they sleep in the forest in an 1893 opera
Hansel & Gretel
At the beginning of an 1893 opera, these little tykes are sent into the woods to pick strawberries
Hansel & Gretel
In an 1893 opera, Peter is the father of these gingerbread-gorgers
Hansel & Gretel
In an 1893 opera, the Sandman puts this young title duo to sleep & the Dew Fairy wakes them up
Hansel & Gretel
The witch in this 1893 Humperdinck opera is sometimes played by a man
Hansel & Gretel
They were the son & daughter of Peter, a poor broom maker & his wife, Gertrude
Hansel & Gretel
The text of this 1893 Engelbert Humperdinck opera was written by his sister, Adelheid Wette
Hansel And Gretel
Adelheid Wette, Engelbert Humperdinck's sister, wrote the libretto for this 1893 opera of a fairy tale pair
Hansel and Gretel
Gingerbread figures prominently in this 1893 Humperdinck opera
Hansel and Gretel
Gingerbread figures turn back into boys & girls when the witch's spell is broken in this opera
Hansel and Gretel
In a famous fairy tale opera, these 2 children turn the witch into a giant cookie -- serves her right
Hansel and Gretel
In this opera based on a Grimm fairy tale, the witch lures 2 kids into her gingerbread house
Hansel and Gretel
Of all the operas we know, this 1893 work based on a Grimm role has the most gingerbread in it
Hansel and Gretel
The "Hexenritt", or "Witches' Ride", is sung in Act III of this 1893 fairy tale opera
Hansel and Gretel
This 1893 opera based on a children's tale is set partly in the woods of Ilsenstein
Hansel and Gretel
This Humperdinck opera developed from verses written by his sister which were based on a Grimm fairy tale
Hansel and Gretel
Thea Musgrave's opera about her, "Harriet, a Woman Called Moses", has 2 acts: "From Bondage" & "To Freedom"
Harriet Tubman
"Les Troyens A Carthage" was the only part of his long opera "Les Troyens" performed during his lifetime
Hector Berlioz
This woman of Troy shows up in several operas, including "Mefistofele"
Helen
After his death in 1958, Finnish composer Aarre Merikanto's opera "Juha" premiered on radio in this capital
Helsinki
Operas based on this Norwegian's plays include "The Feast at Solhaug" & "Peer Gynt"
Henrik Ibsen
Composer Douglas Moore took flight with "The Wings of the Dove", based on a 1902 novel by this author
Henry James
Casting call for "Anna Bolena"! You'll need to sing bass (& gain 200 pounds) to play this hefty English king
Henry VIII
Cavalli's 17th century opera "Ercole Amante" tells the story of this mythological laborer in love
Hercules
Spontini's opera about this adventurer's conquest of Mexico premiered in 1809
Hernando Cortez
Coppelius & Dr. Miracle appear in "The Tales of" him
Hoffmann
Jacques Offenbach died on Oct. 5, 1880, 4 months before his "Tales of" this poet was first produced
Hoffmann
"Hunyadi Laszlo" is one of this country's best-loved operas
Hungary
Ferenc Erkel's 1844 work "Hunyady Laszlo" is one of this country's most famous operas
Hungary
Vassily disguises himself as a woman but is seen shaving in this "Firebird" composer's opera "Mavra"
Igor Stravinsky
"Lakme" is set in this country, where Lakme is the daughter of a Brahman priest
India
A flop when it debuted in 1904, this Puccini opera set in Nagasaki later became one of the best-loved operas
Madame Butterfly
Act I of this opera opens at Pinkerton's house in Nagasaki
Madame Butterfly
Cio Cio San, a young Japanese woman
Madame Butterfly
Cio-Cio-San's better-known name
Madame Butterfly
Cio-Cio-San, a Japanese woman; Lieutenant Pinkerton, USN; Suzuki, a servant
Madame Butterfly
Her uncle The Bonze curses her for renouncing her religion to marry Lt. B.F. Pinkerton
Madame Butterfly
If this heroine had married Prince Yamadori, there might not be that nasty suicide in Act III
Madame Butterfly
Lt. Pinkerton's girlfriend Cio-Cio-San
Madame Butterfly
Nagasaki is the scene of this tragic 1904 opera
Madame Butterfly
Puccini included a passage from "The Star-Spangled Banner" in one of Pinkerton's numbers in this opera
Madame Butterfly
The title figure of this Puccini opera is Cio-Cio San
Madame Butterfly
This heroine's Japanese name is Cio-Cio-San
Madame Butterfly
This opera ends with the title madam committing hara-kiri
Madame Butterfly
This opera's best-known aria is Cio-Cio-San's "Un Bel Di Vedremo"
Madame Butterfly
This explorer turns up as a character in "A Night at the Chinese Opera"
Marco Polo
Ari liked the arias of this Greek diva who was nicknamed "La Divina"
Maria Callas
You're such a diva that folks compare you to this Greek soprano who was born in NYC in 1923
Maria Callas
"Der Rosenkavalier" takes place in Vienna during the reign of this archduchess
Maria Theresa
In 1956 this black contralto published her autobiography, "My Lord, What A Morning"
Marian Anderson
The title character of "Maria Stuarda" is better known in English by this name
Mary Stuart
A singing sofa & a chorus of frogs are featured in "L'Enfant et les Sortileges" by this "Bolero" composer
Maurice Ravel
Concepcion's lovers hide inside clocks in her husband's shop in "L'Heure Espagnole" by this "Bolero" composer
Maurice Ravel
If you like singing furniture--& who doesn't?--you'll love "L'enfant et les sortileges" by this "Bolero" composer
Maurice Ravel
This "Bolero" composer's opera "L'Enfant et les Sortileges" features a singing squirrel
Maurice Ravel
His children's books "Higglety Pigglety Pop!" & "Where the Wild Things Are" have been turned into operas
Maurice Sendak
Darius Milhaud wrote a 1932 opera about this Hapsburg emperor of Mexico
Maximilian
Satan, using this name, appears to Faust & agrees to give him youth in return for his soul
Mephistopheles
Spontini's 1809 opera "Fernand Cortez" is also called "The Conquest Of" this country
Mexico
"The Jesters' Supper" was first performed in this city where you'll find Da Vinci's "Last Supper"
Milan
In "La Boheme" Rodolfo lights her fire; they meet when she asks him to light her candle
Mimi
In "La boheme" the poet Rodolfo falls in love with this seamstress who suffers from tuberculosis
Mimi
A one-act opera based on an episode in "Great Expectations" is called this woman's "Wedding night"
Miss Havisham
1892: Tonio & Beppe, a couple of clowns
Pagliacci
A highlight of Enrico Caruso's career was his rendition of the aria "Vesti la Giubba" in this Leoncavallo opera
Pagliacci
The title clowns of this Leoncavallo work arrive in a parade led by a donkey, not in a tiny car
Pagliacci
This 1892 Leoncavallo work has a play within the opera
Pagliacci
This Leoncavallo opera ends with the words "La commedia e finita" -- "The comedy is ended"
Pagliacci
It's the capital city where "Carmen" composer Georges Bizet was born in 1838
Paris
Meyerbeer's opera "Les Huguenots" takes place in 1572 in Touraine & in this capital city
Paris
(Sofia of the Clue Crew in Germany) Paintings in the singers' hall at Neuschwanstein depict this knight who sought the Holy Grail & inspired an opera
Parsifal
Klingsor, a sorcerer; Amfortas, keeper of the grail; Gurnemanz, a knight
Parsifal
Tannheuser & Lohengrin are knights; this title character of another Wagner opera is a "pure fool"
Parsifal
The first & second Knights of the Grail are roles in this 1882 Wagner opera
Parsifal
The knights in this Wagner opera eat bread & drink wine consecrated by the Holy Grail
Parsifal
Anthony Davis' opera "Tania" is a surreal depiction of the 1974 abduction of this young woman
Patty Hearst
A not very realistic Ceylon is the setting for Bizet's work about "fishers" for these gems
Pearls
A 1913 opera about this queen of Ithaca is based on an episode from "The Odyssey"
Penelope
This alliterative '60s soap about a New England town shot Ryan O'Neal to stardom & came to DVD in 2009
Peyton Place
In a Puccini opera, he marries then abandons Cio-Cio-San
Pinkerton
Last name of the gossip in Menotti's "The Old Maid and the Thief", it's the same as a Puccini lieutenant
Pinkerton
The opera "Monna Vanna" (which isn't about Vanna White) takes place in this "Leaning Tower" city
Pisa
George Gershwin personally asked Howard University voice professor Todd Duncan to originate this title role
Porgy
"I got plenty o' nuttin'"--I'm not complaining, I'm quoting a song from this American opera
Porgy and Bess
1935 American opera whose final scene features the following
Porgy and Bess
A buzzard flies overhead & inspires the cast of this Gershwin opera to sing "The Buzzard Song"
Porgy and Bess
Robert Guilliaume appeared in a 1965 production of this Gershwin work at the Vienna Volksoper
Porgy and Bess
From dealing with Betsy, I know why this 2-word Italian term can mean a diva or a real pain
Prima donna
His new "Tosca" was the toasta Roma in 1900
Puccini
Henry Purcell wrote operas about "The Faery" one & "The Indian" one
Queen
In Flotow's opera "Martha", Lady Harriet is a lady-in-waiting to this last Stuart queen of England
Queen Anne
In "Maria Stuarda", this woman signs the death warrant of her cousin Mary Queen of Scots
Queen Elizabeth
In "Maria Stuarda", this queen orders Mary Stuart's execution after Mary calls her a "bastarda"
Queen Elizabeth I
In "Maria Stuarda", this queen signs Mary Stuart's death warrant after being called a bastard
Queen Elizabeth I
This queen is a leading character in the epic 20th century opera "Christophe Colomb"
Queen Isabella
This queen reigned in several operas, including "L'Atlantida" & "Christophe Colomb"
Queen Isabella
In a Goldmark opera, King Solomon's favorite courtier falls for this Biblical queen
Queen of Sheba
Stravinsky: "The ____'s Progress"
Rake
Concepcion's lovers hid inside clocks in this "Bolero" composer's opera "L'heure espangnole"
Ravel
"Salome", this composer's first successful opera, was banned in Boston in 1923
Richard Strauss
His "Elecktra" in 1908 may have been electric, but it was his "Salome" 3 years earlier that was scandalous
Richard Strauss
"Das Rheingold", a one-act opera, serves as the prologue to this composer's "Ring" cycle
Richard Wagner
Birgit Nilsson is best known for her heroic roles in this composer's operas
Richard Wagner
Flosshilde is a Rhinemaiden in this composer's "Das Rheingold"
Richard Wagner
He wrote both text & music for his 3-act opera "Tristan And Isolde"
Richard Wagner
In 1876 he opened an opera house in the Franconian town of Bayreuth
Richard Wagner
Klingsor's magic garden is filled with flower maidens in this German composer's 1882 opera "Parsifal"
Richard Wagner
The Seattle Opera is famous for its back-to-back productions of this composer's "Ring" cycle, in German & English
Richard Wagner
The composition of this German's "Ring" cycle spanned over 20 years
Richard Wagner
The first scene of this composer's "Das Rheingold" takes place at the bottom of the Rhine
Richard Wagner
This "Lohengrin" composer's first opera, "Die Fein", wasn't performed until 1888, five years after his death
Richard Wagner
This composer's adopted niece, Johanna, created the role of Elisabeth in his opera "Tannhauser"
Richard Wagner
Andre Gretry, "the Moliere of music", composed a 1784 opera about this crusading king
Richard the Lionhearted
Gilda, the daughter of this hunchback, falls in love with the licentious Duke of Mantua, with dire consequences
Rigoletto
He's Verdi's title hunchbacked court jester
Rigoletto
He's the hunchback jester to the Duke of Mantua in a Verdi opera
Rigoletto
The "woman is fickle" in this opera
Rigoletto
The Duke of Mantua's "La donna e mobile" is from this opera
Rigoletto
The Duke of Mantua, Gilda, Count Monterone
Rigoletto
The first of Verdi's trilogy of romantic operas, it was followed by "Il Trovatore" & "La Traviata"
Rigoletto
The title character of this Verdi opera is a hunchbacked court jester
Rigoletto
This Verdi jester is considered one of the most challenging baritone roles ever written
Rigoletto
This widower & hunchback is the court jester to the Duke of Mantua
Rigoletto
Placido Domingo starred in a 1992 TV version of "Tosca", taped in its actual settings in this capital city
Rome
19th century female star Giuditta Grisi created this role in "I Capuleti E I Montecchi"; surprise!
Romeo
The Bolshoi presented this ballet at the Met in 1959, with Yuri Zhdanov & Galina Ulanova as the title lovers
Romeo & Juliet
Count Almaviva is a character in this Italian's "Barber of Seville", first performed in Rome on Feb. 20, 1816
Rossini
The murdered King Nino returns as a ghost in "Semiramide" by this "William Tell" composer
Rossini
In the last scene of "The Maid Of Orleans", a fire is lit in this city
Rouen
Yuri Shaporin's 1925 opera "The Decembrists" was set in this country 100 years earlier
Russia
In 1926 the Chicago Opera Co. presented Charles Cadman's "The Witch Of" this Massachusetts town
Salem
"Herodias' Daughter Who Was Trying to Get a Head"
Salome
1905: Herod & Jokanaan (aka John the Baptist)
Salome
A highlight of this tragic opera set in Palestine is the "Dance of the Seven Veils"
Salome
Hedwig Lachmann translated an Oscar Wilde play into German for this Richard Strauss opera
Salome
Narraboth, Herodias, John the Baptist
Salome
Some dance to remember; she dances for the head of John the Baptist after he resists her advances
Salome
This title character performs the Dance of the Seven Veils for Herod in an opera by Richard Strauss
Salome
To play Sportin' Life in "Porgy and Bess", study the performance of this Rat Packer who played him in the 1959 film
Sammy Davis, Jr.
An evil opium dealer is strangled with his own pigtail in "L'Oracolo", set in this California city's Chinatown
San Francisco
This "Ragtime" composer wrote the libretto for his own opera, "Trimonisha", and choreographed it too
Scott Joplin
A town called Roulettenburg is the setting for "The Gambler" by this "Peter and the Wolf" composer
Sergei Prokofiev
This Russian composer's "The Love for Three Oranges" is an opera within an opera about a melancholy prince
Sergei Prokofiev
"Carmen" is set in this city around 1820
Seville
Figaro is the famous "Barber of" this Spanish city
Seville
Like "Carmen", Prokofiev's opera "The Duenna" takes place in this Spanish city
Seville
This composer of the enchanting ballet "Swan Lake" wrote an opera called "The Enchantress"
Tchaikovsky
Of a baritone, a bass or a tenor, what Caruso was
Tenor
"A Hairstylist in an Andalusian City in Spain"
The Barber of Seville
Count Almaviva; Figaro; Rosina
The Barber of Seville
Crusty old Dr. Bartolo keeps Rosina under lock & key in this Spanish-set opera
The Barber of Seville
Figaro is the title character of this 1816 Rossini opera
The Barber of Seville
This Paisiello opera about a Spaniard was "snipped" out of the repertoire by Rossini's more popular version
The Barber of Seville
This Rossini opera was first performed under an Italian title meaning "Almaviva, the useless precaution"
The Barber of Seville
When I need a haircut, I think of this comic opera whose Italian title is "Il Barbiere di Siviglia"
The Barber of Seville
London's Royal Opera House traces its history back to a 1728 performance of this John Gay "Opera"
The Beggar's Opera
The bewitching opera based on this Arthur Miller play is set in Salem
The Crucible
You'll need a contralto or a mezzo to play Tituba in the 1961 opera based on this Arthur Miller play
The Crucible
Douglas Moore's 1951 opera "Giants In" this is an adaptation of the novel by Ole E. Rolvaag
The Earth
This 2008 opera is based partly on a 1986 David Cronenberg film
The Fly
A Norwegian sea captain is a character in this 1843 opera
The Flying Dutchman
Act I of this "airborne" Wagner work includes a tenor aria about a sailor returning to his sweetheart
The Flying Dutchman
Common translation of the Wagner title "Der Fliegende Hollander"
The Flying Dutchman
Daland, a captain of the high seas who meets a mysterious stranger
The Flying Dutchman
The Joad family sings up a storm (make that a dust storm) in the opera adapted from this Steinbeck novel
The Grapes of Wrath
Critics were carried away when Dwayne Croft played Nick Carraway in the 1999 opera based on this novel
The Great Gatsby
It inspired 2 operas named "Esmeralda" & one called "Quasimodo"
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco went "Wilde" & turned this Oscar Wilde play into a 1962 opera
The Importance of Being Earnest
This 1819 Rossini opera is based on a poem by Sir Walter Scott
The Lady of the Lake
Rossini's "William Tell" Overture was used as the theme for this classic TV western
The Lone Ranger
"One Enchanted Recorder"
The Magic Flute
Mozart's Queen of the Night, a sorceress
The Magic Flute
Scholars think that a panpipe found by Captain Cook in what is now Vanuatu inspired this 18th century opera
The Magic Flute
This 1791 work is considered the greatest example in music history of the Zauberoper, or "magic opera"
The Magic Flute
This Mozart opera is set in part in the temple of Isis in Egypt
The Magic Flute
Count Almaviva attempts to thwart this opera's title marriage
The Marriage of Figaro
Fun abounds as a valet prepares for his own wedding in this 1786 Mozart opera
The Marriage of Figaro
Mozart opera in which the count tries to thwart & postpone his valet's wedding
The Marriage of Figaro
Susanna the maid is the bride in this Mozart opera
The Marriage of Figaro
"Il Mercante Di Venezia"
The Merchant of Venice
"Le Marchand de Venise" is a 1935 opera based on this play
The Merchant of Venice
It's the play that inspired Reynaldo Hahn's opera "Le Marchand de Venise"
The Merchant of Venice
Shifting the title's focus: "Jessika"
The Merchant of Venice
Verdi's "Falstaff" is based on Shakespeare's "Henry IV" plays & this Shakespeare comedy
The Merry Wives of Windsor
What a farce: "Sir John in Love" & several called "Falstaff"
The Merry Wives of Windsor
His son, Nanki-Poo, poses as a minstrel & later weds Yum-Yum
The Mikado
Yum-Yum, who is due to marry Ko-Ko, falls in love with the minstrel Nanki-Poo in this operetta
The Mikado
This nation opened its first opera house on the banks of the Amstel River in 1986
The Netherlands/Holland
"The Shepherds of the Delectable Mountain" is an opera based on this John Bunyan work
The Pilgrim's Progress
Tom Rakewell is lured into a life of vice in this 1951 opera based on a series of engravings by William Hogarth
The Rake's Progress
It was truly a red-letter day when an opera based on this Hawthorne novel premiered in Boston in 1896
The Scarlet Letter
"La Bisbetica Dominata" was based on this Shakespeare play
The Taming of the Shrew
"Der Sturm"
The Tempest
It's full of magic: "Stormen" & several called "Der Sturm"
The Tempest
You'll need some long-winded singers to star in "Stormen", a Swedish opera based on this play
The Tempest
A governess fears that her charges are communicating with ghosts in an opera based on this Henry James novella
The Turn of the Screw
Tom Selleck was Jed Andrews on this Genoa City-set CBS soap where Victor & Nikki found romance
The Young and the Restless
Dallapiccola's opera "Ulisse" concerns Ulysses' return to Ithaca after this war
Trojan War
Ilia, the daughter of King Priam, is a captive princess in "Idomeneo", set just after this war
Trojan War
Busoni's opera about this cruel Chinese princess isn't nearly as famous as Puccini's
Turandot
Puccini's last opera, it's set in Peking
Turandot
Smetana's "Viola", with just 365 bars of music, is based on this play
Twelfth Night
A story by Edgar Allan Poe inspired Philip Glass' opera "The Fall of the House of" this
Usher
In an opera based on a Polidori story, Lord Ruthven is really one of these bloodsuckers
Vampire
This Portuguese explorer falls in love with an African captive in Meyerbeer's opera, "L'Africaine"
Vasco da Gama
This city on the Adriatic is the setting for "La Gioconda"
Venice
Appropriately, this Roman goddess oversees the love life of her grandson in Mozart's opera "Ascanio in Alba"
Venus
"Rigoletto" prompted Rossini to say that at last he recognized this compser's genius
Verdi
In 1872 this composer conducted his "Aida" at La Scala in Milan
Verdi
The ghosts of Louis XVI & his court return to one of their favorite haunts in "The Ghosts of" this French palace
Versailles
"Esmeralda", an 1840s opera, is based on a work by this "Miserable" author
Victor Hugo
The premiere of this Quasimodo creator's play "Hernani" caused a riot; Verdi based an opera on it anyway
Victor Hugo
Consumed with guilt over her affair with Boris, the heroine of "Katya Kabanova" drowns herself in this Russian river
Volga
Act I of this composer's "Don Giovanni" features the famous "Champagne Aria"
W.A. Mozart
Bellini's 1831 opera "Norma" had its world premiere at this Milan opera house
La Scala
In Handel's opera "Rinaldo", a sorceress rides in a chariot drawn by these fire-breathing monsters
dragons
Poignant, given Pagliaccio's profession, the line "Ridi Pagliaccio" means do this, Pagliaccio
laugh
Naval rank of Pinkerton in "Madame Butterfly"
lieutenant
In the 1830s Verdi studied with Vincenzo Lavigna, formerly maestro al cembalo at this Milan opera house
La Scala
This Milan opera house has a secondary theater for chamber music
La Scala
This Milan opera house was built by Maria Theresa of Austria to replace the Royal Ducal Theatre
La Scala
The name of this Verdi opera means "The Fallen Woman"
La Traviata
When 1st produced, this Verdi opera known as "the strayed one" was a failure, due in part to contemporary costumes
La Traviata
Marcello, a painter; Mimi, a flower girl; Rodolfo, a poet
La boheme
Around the same time, Leoncavallo & this man both wrote operas based on the novel "Scenes de la vie de boheme"
(Giacomo) Puccini
He began writing "Die Meistersinger" in 1845 as a companion piece to "Tannhauser", but didn't finish it until 1867
(Richard) Wagner
He coined the term "gesamtkunst, werk" to describe a "total art work" in which all the art forms combine to the same end
(Richard) Wagner
Like many of his works, this composer's "Tannhauser" is based on Germanic legends
(Richard) Wagner
Of 14, 24 or 34, Mozart's age when he commissioned his first opera, "Mitridate Re di Ponto", premiered in 1770
14
Even Ebenezer would enjoy "Mr. Scrooge", an opera inspired by this famous story
A Christmas Carol
An enchanting work: "The Faery Queen"
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Of adapting this Southern play, Andre Previn said it's "always been an opera. It's just that the music was missing"
A Streetcar Named Desire
A high school graduation party leads to romance in "The Tender Land" by this "Appalachian Spring" composer
Aaron Copland
Much of this Puccini opera takes place in a cafe in Paris' Latin Quarter
La boheme
Musetta has her very own waltz in Act II of this Puccini opera
La boheme
Act I of this opera ends with a love duet between Roddolfo & Mimi
La bohème
Marcello fetches a doctor, but Mimi still dies, leaving Rodolfo heartbroken at the end of this opera
La bohème
Puccini: "Oh Be Lame"
La bohème
Sung by Rodolfo to Mimi, "Che Gelida Manina", "Your Tiny Hand Is Frozen", is a beloved aria in this opera
La bohème
The title of this Puccini opera deals with a painter (Marcello), a poet (Rodolfo) & a philosopher (Colline)
La bohème
Title shared by the Puccini and Leoncavallo operas about Mimi, a poor seamstress
La bohème
In this Verdi opera Violetta Valery is a fallen woman who has a touch of consumption
La traviata
Verdi wrote an aria called "La Luce Langue"--The Light Fails--for this bloothirsty villainess
Lady Macbeth
4 sisters cavort in the March family attic in Act I of the opera based on this 1868 novel
Little Women
In a Richard Wagner opera, this knight in shining armor arrives on a boat drawn by a swan
Lohengrin
In a Wagner opera, this title knight tells Elsa he'll marry her so long as she never asks his identity
Lohengrin
The swan that pulls this title character's boat is actually Elsa's enchanted brother, Gottfried
Lohengrin
This lord never finished his poem "Don Juan", but Zdenìk Fibich based an opera on it anyway
Lord Byron
Placido Domingo, Jose Carreras & this Italian called; they're doing a "Four Tenors" tour, & you're number four!!!!
Luciano Pavarotti
This hefty ebullient tenor once taught elementary school in Modena, Italy, his birthplace
Luciano Pavarotti
This hefty superstar tenor from Modena, Italy is often compared to Caruso
Luciano Pavarotti
Donizetti's opera about this female Borgia is based on a play by Victor Hugo
Lucrezia Borgia
Alban Berg's 1937 opera is a real doozy, or a real this, the double-talk name of its title character
Lulu
(AUDIO DAILY DOUBLE): This 1847 opera by an Italian composer features singing witches
Macbeth
Swiss composer Ernest Bloch's only completed opera is based on this play; the role of Banquo is sung by a tenor
Macbeth
"How You Might Address an Upper-Class Married Creature of the Order Lepidoptera"
Madame Butterfly
1904: Suzuki, a geisha's servant
Madame Butterfly
Title character played by former Alvin Ailey dancer Desmond Richardson in a 1997 ballet
Othello
This "Billy The Kid" composer wrote 2 operas: "The Second Hurricane" & "The Tender Land"
Aaron Copland
Traditionally, a woman plays this mythological "heel" in Handel's opera "Deidamia"
Achilles
Virgil Thomson's 1933 opera "Four Saints In Three" of these actually has 4 of them
Acts
Henry Purcell's 17th century opera about Dido & this Virgil hero may be his masterpiece
Aeneas
"Aida "
Africa
This king & his wife Clytemnestra appear in Gluck's opera "Iphigeneia in Aulis"
Agamemnon
1871: Ramfis, the high priest of Isis
Aida
Act II, Scene 2 of this opera begins with the song "Gloria All' Egitto e Ad Iside", or "Glory to Egypt and to Isis"
Aida
Act III of this Verdi opera unfolds near a temple of Isis
Aida
Amneris, Daughter of Pharaoh, has an Ethiopian slave girl-- her
Aida
Egyptologist Auguste Mariette claimed his scenario was the basis for the libretto of this 1871 opera
Aida
Ramfis is the high priest of Egypt in this Verdi opera
Aida
She's a slave to Amneris, an Egyptian princess
Aida
The Franco-Prussian war delayed this Verdi opera's premiere: scenery couldn't leave besieged Paris for Cairo
Aida
The king of Egypt; Radames, a soldier; Ramfis, the high priest
Aida
This Ethiopian princess was captured by the Egyptians & made a slave to Princess Amneris
Aida
This Verdi opera was first performed on Dec. 24, 1871, in Cairo
Aida
This Verdi title character is an Ethiopian slave to Pharaoh's daughter
Aida
This title character is actually the daughter of King Amonasro of Ethiopia
Aida
This title slave & Pharaoh's daughter Amneris are both in love with Radames
Aida
"Il Re Pastore" dramatizes a legend about this conqueror known in the opera as Alessandro
Alexander the Great
This French novelist, a pere without peer, penned the libretto for Monpou's "Le Piquillo"
Alexandre Dumas
Princess Ninetta is briefly transformed into a rat in "The Love for Three" of these citrus fruits
Oranges
Euridice is a soprano role in Monteverdi's "The Fable Of" this man who went to hell & back for her
Orpheus
The earliest opera that survives, Peri's 1600 "Euridice" tells of Euridice & this husband
Orpheus
Act IV of this opera begins with Desdemona's "Willow Song"
Otello
The title character of this 1816 opera is in service with the Venetian army
Otello
Rossini's opera about this tragic character is subtitled "Il Moro Di Venezia
Othello
Erica Kane Martin Brent Cudahy Chandler Montgomery Montgomery plus 4 other last names is on this soap
All My Children
He was the crippled 12-year-old title character in the first opera written for television
Amahl
In 1989 composer Gian Carlo Menotti directed his own opera about this boy "and the Night Visitors"
Amahl
Menotti: "______ and the Night Visitors"
Amahl
One of the most popular Christmas operas is Menotti's classic about this boy "and the Night Visitors"
Amahl
The title characters of this opera are a poor boy, King Kaspar, King Melchior & King Balthazar
Amahl and the Night Visitors
This 20th century opera was inspired by Hieronymus Bosch's painting "The Adoration of the Magi"
Amahl and the Night Visitors
This Gian Carlo Menotti TV opera features a crippled boy, his mother & 3 kings: Kaspar, Melchior & Balthazar
Amahl and the Night Visitors
This Menotti opera debuted on the New York stage on April 9, 1952, 4 months after it was televised
Amahl and the Night Visitors
This "Phantom" & "Cats" composer's mini-opera "Tell Me on a Sunday" premiered on the BBC in 1980
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Jean Cocteau wrote the libretto for an opera about this Sophoclean heroine, Ismene's sister
Antigone
The heroine of this Czech composer's 1901 opera "Rusalka" is a water nymph
Antonin Dvorak
This composer of the "New World Symphony" wrote the operas "The Cunning Peasant" & "The Pigheaded Peasants"
Antonin Dvorak
Rimsky-Korsakov wrote an opera about Mozart's rivalry with this man, who allegedly poisoned him
Antonio Salieri
An arietta is a short, simple one of these operatic songs
Aria
Verdi fans always want "moor" of this Shakespearean hero
Othello
In "The Ring of the Nibelung", Siegfried braved a ring of fire to save this goddess
Brunhilde
In Wagner's "Die Walkure", she was Wotan's favorite of the Valkyrie warriors
Brunhilde
In Wagner's "Gotterdammerung", she dies by riding her horse onto Siegfried's funeral pyre
Brunhilde
The poetry of this English lord inspired a number of operas, including "Lara" & "The Bride of Abydos"
Byron
Biondello hides inside a mechanical goose in Mozart's unfinished opera "The Goose of" this Egyptian city
Cairo
Lukas Foss' opera "The Jumping Frog of" this county is based on a story by Mark Twain
Calaveras County
1875: Escamillo, a matador
Carmen
Celestine Galli-Marie was the 1st to play this seductress from Seville in Bizet's most famous opera
Carmen
Characters in this Bizet opera include a toreador, a gypsy girl & cigarette factory girls
Carmen
Don Jose is a soldier in love with this Bizet bombshell
Carmen
Don Jose is bewitched by this title gypsy girl
Carmen
Escamillo, a bullfighter; Mercedes, a gypsy girl; Don Jose, a soldier
Carmen
In Bizet's opera, this passionate gypsy works in a cigarette factory, so you could call her a "fumme fatale"
Carmen
Stationed in Seville, Don Jose is bewitched by a gypsy girl in this Bizet opera
Carmen
This title temptress of an 1875 opera works in a cigarette factory
Carmen
When this Gypsy girl spurns Don Jose's affection, he kills her with a dagger
Carmen
When this opera opens, a cigarette girl tells soldiers she is looking for a corporal named Jose
Carmen
On Nov. 23, 1903 this tenor made his U.S. debut playing the Duke in "Rigoletto" at the Metropolitan Opera
Caruso
This Neapolitan tenor made his last public appearance on Christmas Eve, 1920 in "La Juive"
Caruso
Your performance as Loris in "Fedora" will make everyone forget this great tenor who originated the role in 1898
Caruso
Australian composer Arthur Benjamin's 1953 opera "A Tale of Two Cities" is based on a novel by this author
Charles Dickens
Zandonai's opera "Il Grillo del Focolare" is adapted from this author's "The Cricket on the Hearth"
Charles Dickens
Sir William Walton & Paul Dehn turned this 19th century Russian's play "The Bear" into a one-act opera
Chekhov
In the sex-change opera "The Breasts of Tiresias", the husband bears 40,000 of these in a single day
Children
Both Stravinsky's "The Nightingale" & Puccini's "Turandot" are set in this country
China
Choreographer Frederick Ashton played one of the ugly stepsisters when this ballet debuted in 1948
Cinderella
In an opera based on a fairy tale, this title girl gives the prince one of a pair of bracelets before leaving the ball
Cinderella
There's no de"Nile": Masse, Massenet & Mattheson all wrote operas about her
Cleopatra
Nutty about "The Nutcracker"? You've probably seen it during this month (that's the month it was first performed, too)
December
Gaza is the setting for a Biblical opera about Samson and this hussy
Delilah
In a Saint-Saens opera, Samson succumbs to the charms of this Philistine woman & ends up dead
Delilah
There's a hair-raising--oops!--hair-cutting scene in Saint-Saens' opera about Samson & her
Delilah
In various versions of "Othello", she's smothered, strangled or stabbed to death
Desdemona
This Johann Strauss opera has appeared in several English versions, including "Night Birds" & "Rosalinda"
Die Fledermaus
This Johann Strauss operetta has appeared in an English version titled "Night Birds"
Die Fledermaus
Donna Elvira is one of the women seduced by the title character of this Mozart opera
Don Giovanni
The title libertine of this 1787 Mozart opera seduces women in 17th century Seville
Don Giovanni
This Mozart opera about an insatiable lover is also known as "The Reprobate Punished"
Don Giovanni
This Mozart opera opens with the title character on the prowl for Donna Anna
Don Giovanni
In an 1869 Marius Petipa ballet he puts a metal basin on as a helmet & goes seeking adventure
Don Quixote
This composer finished just 3 scenes of "Olav Trygvason"; they're sometimes performed as a cantata
Edvard Grieg
Philip Glass: "________ on the Beach"
Einstein
Except for a concert version, Massenet's opera of this 11th c. Castilian hero wasn't staged from 1902 to 1999
El Cid
In a Rossini opera, this queen is incensed to find out the Earl of Leicester is secretly married
Elizabeth I
"J'Accuse" this "Nana" novelist of writing the libretto for Bruneau's opera "Messidor"
Emile Zola
Not to "J'Accuse" Alfred Bruneau, but he got opera stories like "Le Reve" from this author friend
Emile Zola
In this German composer's "The Royal Children", a goose-girl gets poisoned by -- you guessed it! -- a witch!
Engelbert Humperdinck
In 1999 Placido Domingo opened the Met for a record 18th time, breaking this man's record of 17
Enrico Caruso
This great Italian tenor made his official debut in 1894, in Naples, his hometown
Enrico Caruso
In an opera based on a Pushkin poem, Lensky challenges this title character to a duel--big mistake
Eugene Onegin
This Tchaikovsky opera was based on Pushkin's 1833 "Novel in Verse"
Eugene Onegin
"La Boheme"
Europe
In Offenbach's "Orphee aux Enfers", Orpheus goes to Hades to retrieve this woman, his cheatin' wife
Eurydice
"Merry Wives" make mischief in the Verdi opera named for this fat Shakespearean funster
Falstaff
In Nicolai's opera "The Merry Wives of Windsor", this fat, funny rogue gets dumped into the river in a laundry basket
Falstaff
Some merry wives dress up like fairies in Verdi's 1893 opera named for this Shakespearean character
Falstaff
Verdi's first comic opera was a flop; it was 50 years before he wrote his second, about this Shakespeare character
Falstaff
Verdi's last opera, this comic masterpiece is based in part on Shakespeare's "King Henry IV"
Falstaff
"Mefistofele" is based on this 1808 literary work
Faust
Beniamino Gigli was well known for singing the role of this scholar in "Mefistofele"
Faust
Berlioz's opera about "The Damnation Of" this man features the "Dance of the Sylphs"
Faust
For the gift of youth, this philosopher & alchemist pledges his soul to Mephistopheles
Faust
In Germany this Gounod opera based on a play by Goethe is called "Margarethe", for its heroine
Faust
In Germany, this opera is sometimes called "Margarethe" to separate it from the Goethe drama
Faust
The role of Scrooge is sung by a baritone in this Thea Musgrave opera
"A Christmas Carol"
("Triumph March")
"Aida"
An Ethiopian slave girl is torn between love & patriotism in the Egypt of the Pharaohs in this Verdi opera
"Aida"
In this Verdi opera, the king of Ethiopia is a baritone role while the king of Egypt is a bass
"Aida"
Its 1871 premiere in Cairo was delayed due to the Franco-Prussian War
"Aida"
There's no denial: Act III of this Verdi opera is sometimes called "The Nile Scene"
"Aida"
The 1981 opera based on this Tolstoy novel begins, & ends, at a Moscow railway station
"Anna Karenina"
("Habanera")
"Carmen"
Act I of this 1875 opera takes place in a Seville square near a cigarette factory
"Carmen"
Familiar songs in this opera include Don Jose's "Flower Song" & Escamillo's "Toreador Song"
"Carmen"
In Act II of this Bizet opera, Escamillo sings the "Toreador's Song"
"Carmen"
In a jealous rage, a soldier murders the gypsy with whom he's had a passionate affair in this Bizet opera
"Carmen"
The prince looks for a matching bracelet, not a glass slipper, in "La Cenerentola", based on this fairy tale
"Cinderella"
"Master Peter's Puppet Show" -- a puppet opera (?!) -- is based on a passage from this Cervantes work
"Don Quixote"
Jules Massenet composed an opera based on this famous novel by Miguel de Cervantes
"Don Quixote"
In 1999 Dawn Upshaw was Daisy Buchanan in John Harbison's operatic version of this novel
"The Great Gatsby"
Prokofiev spent over 10 years turning this Tolstoy epic into an opera
"War And Peace"
This Norwegian completed only 3 scenes of "Olav Trygvason", his sole attempt at opera
(Edvard) Grieg
"Uno Sguardo Dal Ponte" is an Italian Opera version of this U.S. playwright's "A View from the Bridge"
Arthur Miller
American composer Robert Ward based a 1961 opera on this author's famous play "The Crucible"
Arthur Miller
"Turandot"
Asia
In a Verdi opera, Odabella saves this famous Hun from being poisoned so she can kill him herself
Attila
In an 1846 opera, this Hun gets stabbed to death by his honey, Odabella
Attila
Verdi's Nabucco, who's also known by a longer form of his name, is the king of this ancient place
Babylon
Rossini: "The ____ of Seville"
Barber
Though a tenor now, Placido Domingo began singing in this vocal range below tenor
Baritone
We've got basses, we've got tenors, but we can't find one of these like the guy on the CD [audio clip]
Baritone
In 1961, as Venus in "Tannhauser", Grace Bumbry became the first black diva to sing at this Wagner festival
Bayreuth
Wagner didn't want "Parsifal" performed outside of this city that now holds Wagner festivals
Bayreuth
Originally, this Czech composer's opera "The Bartered Bride" contained some spoken dialogue
Bedrich Smetana
The heroine of this Czech composer's 1881 opera "Libuse" is the queen of Bohemia
Bedrich Smetana
This Hungarian composer wrote only one opera, the dramatic 1-act "Duke Bluebeard's Castle"
Bela Bartok
Pietro Mascagni wrote his 1935 opera "Nerone" to glorify this dictator
Benito Mussolini
"The Burning Fiery Furnace" is a Biblical opera by this composer of "Billy Budd"
Benjamin Britten
English composer whose 1947 opera "Albert Herring" is about a young man, not a young fish
Benjamin Britten
Julie Taymor directed the 2006 opera "Grendel", which retold this classic tale from the monster's point of view
Beowulf
He wrote the libretto for Dessau's "The Trial of Lucullus" & Weill's "The Threepenny Opera"
Bertolt Brecht
Perhaps the most "indomitable" of Benjamin Britten's opera, this 1951 work has an all-male cast
Billy Budd
Red Whiskers & Squeak serve aboard ship with this title character, Herman Melville's sailorboy
Billy Budd
The Benjamin Britten opera based on this Herman Melville work climaxes with a hanging
Billy Budd
Darn! Bullwinkle isn't in this opera we're studying today; it's not "Boris Badenov", it's this 1874 Mussorgsky opera
Boris Godunov
We assume Samuel Barber composed his mini-opera about "A Hand of" this game according to Hoyle
Bridge
Fuhgeddaboudit! The Opera Co. of this NYC borough performs in unusual venues, like people's living rooms
Brooklyn
First performed on Helsinki Radio in 1958, Merikanto's "Juha" is one of this country's finest operas
Finland
Don Prudenzio is a doctor in "Il viaggio a Reims", written for the coronation of Charles X of this country
France
A "monster" opera based on this Mary Shelley novel premiered in 1990
Frankenstein
He died before "The Trial" was published, so he never got to see the opera version either
Franz Kafka
This Austrian composer didn't complete his operas "Adrast" & "Sakuntala"; he left a symphony "unfinished", too
Franz Schubert
The ballet "Les Sylphides" is danced to music by this Polish-French composer
Frederic Chopin
The libretto for "William Tell" was in this language, the native tongue of neither the composer, Rossini, nor the subject
French
His ever-popular novel "The Brothers Karamazov" inspired an opera by Otakar Jeremias
Fyodor Dostoevsky
After his 1711 opera "Rinaldo" made his name, he immediately moved from Hanover to England
G.F. Handel
He presented his operas "Alcina", "Ariodante" & "Atalanta" at the Covent Garden Theater, as well as his "Messiah"
G.F. Handel
This "Messiah" composer's 1735 opera "Alcina" was based on the epic poem "Orlando Furioso"
G.F. Handel
John Reilly played Sean Donely, the police commissioner of Port Charles with a shady past, on this ABC show
General Hospital
"The Canterbury Pilgrims", an 1884 opera, is based on a work by him
Geoffrey Chaucer
This oratorio composer's 1735 opera "Ariodante" is based on "Orlando Furioso"
George Frideric Handel
He composed a 1-act jazz opera called "Blue Monday" 13 years before "Porgy & Bess"
George Gershwin
"Djamileh" is a comic opera by this composer of "Carmen"
Georges Bizet
He was only 24 when he composed "The Pearl Fishers", which was rediscovered after the success of his "Carmen"
Georges Bizet
Sadly, most of this "Carmen" composer's opera "Clarissa Harlowe" is lost
Georges Bizet
This composer's reputation rests on his first & last full-length operas, "The Pearl Fishers" & "Carmen"
Georges Bizet
Joe is a gambler in his early opera "Blue Monday"; Sportin' Life is a gambler in his later "Porgy and Bess"
Gershwin
Based on the play "The Colleen Bawn", "The Lily of Killarney" takes place in this country
Ireland
She marries King Mark, but Tristan is her consuming passion
Isolde
The discovery of Tristan's affair with this woman, his uncle's wife, leads to the lovers' deaths
Isolde
Bizet & Rimsky-Korsakov both wrote fine operas about this dreadful czar
Ivan the Terrible
Oops! The daughter of this nasty mean czar is killed by accident in "The Maid of Pskov"
Ivan the Terrible
"Lulu" has a lulu of an ending: the heroine is killed by this notorious London murderer
Jack the Ripper
In Alban Berg's unfinished opera "Lulu", Lulu is slain by this notorious London killer
Jack the Ripper
At the end of Donizetti's opera "Anna Bolena", this woman is Henry VIII's new queen
Jane Seymour
Donizetti's "Anna Bolena" ends with the marriage of Henry VIII (aka Enrico) to this woman
Jane Seymour
Puccini's "Madama Butterfly" takes place in the early 1900s in this country
Japan
This Finnish composer's only opera, "The Maiden In The Tower", is rarely performed
Jean Sibelius
In "The Maid of Orleans", this saint has a lot at stake; by the opera's end, she's tied to a stake
Joan of Arc
This famous martyr is the heroine of many operas, including "The Maid of Orleans"
Joan of Arc
"Die Harmonie der Welt" explores the life of this astronomer & his musical theories of planetary motion
Johannes Kepler
The childrens' opera "The Fisherman and His Wife" has a libretto by this author: "Rabbit, Run" to see it
John Updike
By the end of "Salome" this character has lost his head
John the Baptist
Cleopatra (soprano) & Curio (bass) appear in Handel's opera about this man (contralto) in Egypt
Julius Caesar
"Cordelia"
KIng Lear
Not surprisingly, Merlin & Mordred appear in Chausson's opera about this legendary king
King Arthur
Teens go ape over the opera in which this gigantic movie ape falls for Vermeer's "Girl with a Pearl Earring"
King Kong
In 1971 this part-Maori diva had her first Covent Garden triumph in "The Marriage of Figaro"
Kiri Te Kanawa
This New Zealand soprano appeared as Donna Elvira in Joseph Losey's film of "Don Giovanni"
Kiri Te Kanawa
He wrote the music for "Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny"; Brecht wrote the libretto
Kurt Weill
In 1928 he & Bertolt Brecht "jazzed" up "The Beggar's Opera" to create "The Threepenny Opera"
Kurt Weill
Rodolfo burns his poems to keep the stove going in act I of this Puccini work
La Boheme
"Boris Godunov" is the only opera completed by this composer
Modest Mussorgsky
This heroine of a 1915 Schillings opera shares her name with a lady painted by Leonardo
Mona Lisa
This Aztec is the title character in operas by Karl Heinrich Braun & Roger Sessions
Montezuma
You have to be a baritone to play Cortez in Roger Sessions' opera about this emperor of the Aztecs
Montezuma
Make an exodus from the theatre after seeing Schoenberg's incomplete opera about this man & his brother Aaron
Moses
In this composer's "Don Giovanni", the title character seduces women, kills a man & is dragged down to Hell
Mozart
When this Austrian's "La Finta Giardiniera" premiered in 1775, he was almost 19--getting old for a prodigy
Mozart
"Beaucoup de Bruit Pour Rien"
Much Ado About Nothing
Love that sparring: "Beatrice et Benedict"
Much Ado About Nothing
"Feuersnot" is set in this German city that the Germans call Munchen
Munich
Pizzetti's opera "Assassinio Nella Cattedrale" is based on this T.S. Eliot play
Murder in the Cathedral
In an opera based on history, the pharaoh Akhenaten gives up polygamy for this beautiful queen
Nefertiti
You need a mezzo to play this beautiful queen in Phillip Glass's opera "Akhenaton"
Nefertiti
It's the native country of opera star Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, who sang at Princess Diana's wedding
New Zealand
Chou En-lai & Chiang Ch'ing are characters in an opera about this man "in China"
Nixon
"The Girl of the Golden West"
North America
Carl Maria von Weber's 1826 opera about this king of the fairies was subtitled "or, the Elf King's Oath"
Oberon
Carlisle Floyd's opera based on this Steinbeck work has rodentia & homo sapiens in its title
Of Mice And Men
King Solomon is a character in "La Reine de Saba", an opera about the queen of this place
Sheba
This Finn's only opera, "The Maiden in the Tower", had a libretto in Swedish
Sibelius
This hero of "Gotterdammerung" is the son of incestous twins
Siegfried
This title Wagner hero blows a mighty horn call & then kills Fafner, who's in the shape of a dragon
Siegfried
Thea Musgrave's 1995 opera about this South American liberator premiered in Virginia, not Venezuela
Simon Bolivar
This composer of "The Mikado" wrote only 1 grand opera, "Ivanhoe"
Sir Arthur Sullivan
Operas based on this author's works include "Il Talismano", "Il Templario" & "La Prigione d'Edimburgo"
Sir Walter Scott
Scotsman whose novel, "The Bride of Lammermoor" inspired "Lucia di Lammermoor"
Sir Walter Scott
The works of this novelist & poet inspired "Lucia di Lammermoor", "La Donna del Lago" & "La Jolie Fille de Perth"
Sir Walter Scott
Bellini's opera "La Sonnambula" is so named because Amina, its heroine, has this nocturnal habit
Sleepwalking
Karl Goldmark's opera "The Queen Of Sheba" opens in the palace of this Biblical king
Solomon
"Florencia en el Amazonas"
South America
In the 1983 opera named for him, this saint of Assisi preaches a sermon to the birds
St. Francis of Assisi
This Swede's 1907 play "The Ghost Sonata" inspired a 1984 chamber opera by Aribert Reimann
Strindberg
"The Mother Of Us All", by Virgil Thomson & Gertrude Stein, is about this American feminist
Susan B. Anthony
Odile & Prince Sigfried are the deux-o who dance the Black Swan pas de deux in this ballet
Swan Lake
"Un Ballo En Maschera" dramatizes the assassination of this country's King Gustavus III at a masked ball
Sweden
A card-playing countess ends up as a ghost in this "Nutcracker" composer's opera "The Queen of Spades"
Tchaikovsky
Igor Stravinsky's father, Fyodor, sang in the opera "Maid of Orleans" by this "Choleric" composer
Tchaikovsky
Tchekalinsky, Tomsky & Prince Yeletsky are roles in "The Queen of Spades" by this composeretsky
Tchaikovsky
This composer of "The Nutcracker" said, "The music of a ballet is not invariably bad"
Tchaikovsky
"The Queen of Cornwall" is based on a play by this "Tess of the d'Urbervilles" author
Thomas Hardy
"The Queen of Cornwall", from a play by this author, premiered "Far from the Madding Crowd", in Glastonbury
Thomas Hardy
How convenient--the title character of this Puccini opera is an opera singer
Tosca
The role Placido Domingo has played more than any other is Cavaradossi in this Puccini opera
Tosca
This Puccini title heroine's first name is Floria
Tosca
This title character is sent to fetch Isolde, his uncle King Mark's intended bride
Tristan
The opera based on this Maurice Sendak book features a wild thing with beard & a wild thing with horns
Where The Wild Things Are
Act 1 of this Rossini opera takes place on the shores of Lake Lucerne
William Tell
In a Rossini opera this Swiss patriot is forced to shoot an apple placed on his son Jemmy's head
William Tell
Jemmy, a Swiss boy used as a target stand
William Tell
Part of this Rossini opera takes place on the shores of Lake Lucerne
William Tell
Rudolph is the commander of Gessler's archers in this opera
William Tell
The title character of this opera addresses his son in the aria "Sois immobile" ("hold yourself still")
William Tell
The score for "The Bread and Roses Opera" by Steve Friedman was lifted from this composer's "Don Giovanni"
Wolfgang A. Mozart
The famous aria known as "Handel's Largo" is sung in "Serse", a 1738 opera about this great ruler
Xerxes
In "Siegfried" Fafner the giant is turned into one of these mythical beasts before Siegfried slays him
a dragon
In "Cavalleria Rusticana", an ear gets bitten when Alfio challenges Turiddu to their fateful one of these
a duel
In a Menotti opera Madame Flora is a fake one of these psychics; Patricia Arquette plays a title one on TV
a medium
In the opera "Broken Strings", a soprano plays a fish & a tenor plays one of these proud fan-tailed birds
a peacock
In "Il Trovatore" Leonora escapes the clutches of a count by drinking poison from this piece of jewelry
a ring
In a Richard Strauss opera, the princess sends one of these to her cavalier--hence the title
a rose
Warning: If you play the role of Jemmy in the opera "William Tell", you'll get one of these shot off your head
an apple
"Ha! Welch' ein Augenblick" is a famous example of the "vengeance" type of this operatic solo
aria
The doctor in Berg's "Wozzeck" is sung by this lowest male voice
bass
The title role in "Boris Godunov" is for a singer in this vocal range
bass
A toast to Mozart's "Don Giovanni", which features an aria nicknamed for this bubbly beverage
champagne
Mimi in "La boheme" suffers & dies from this disease
consumption
