In addition to sailors and witches, Purcell gave us one of the most sublime laments in opera: Dido's When I Am Laid in Earth. 2 Dido and AeneasĪ lone English operatic success until the 20th century, Dido recounts the tale of the tragic Queen of Carthage and her love for Aeneas, inconveniently en route to found a new Troy. A popular operatic subject (Gluck, Jaques Offenbach, Philip Glass), L'Orfeo is emotional, melancholy and transcendent. The sorrowful Orpheus, through his music, tries to save her from the Underworld. Monteverdi was the 'founding father' of operatic form. The weekly Roma c'è, the monthly Wanted in Rome, and the website also have complete lists of performances.With a mythological musician as hero, L'Orfeo ranks as the first great opera. To find these productions, listen closely or look for the old-fashioned posters advertising classic operas like Tosca and La Traviata.

Quality is generally quite high, even for smaller, low-budget productions. Rome's many opera companies commandeer church courtyards, ancient villas, and soccer campi (fields) with performances that range from mom-and-poperas to full-scale, big-budget extravaganzas. During the summertime exodus of many of the city's pubs, restaurants, and discos to outdoor venues, opera, too, heads outside for its summer season. Rome's spring opera season runs from November or December to May. But Rome is Italy's capital, and so, even though its opera company does not have the renown of the aforementioned landmarks, it does have a healthy following. Opera buffs know that the best performances and most exquisite surroundings for opera are to be found at Milan's Scala, Venice's newly reconstructed Fenice, and at Verona's Arena (outdoor amphitheater).

Old tosca opera posters