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Gioachino Rossini's comic opera "Barber of Seville" premieres at the Teatro Argentina in Rome, Italy

The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution is an opera buffa (comic opera) in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini.

The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution is an opera buffa (comic opera) in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's French comedy The Barber of Seville (1775). The premiere of Rossini's opera (under the title Almaviva, o sia L'inutile precauzione) took place on 20 February 1816 at the Teatro Argentina, Rome, with designs by Angelo Toselli.

Rossini's Barber of Seville is considered to be one of the greatest masterpieces of comedy within music, and has been described as the opera buffa of all "opere buffe". After two centuries, it remains a popular work.

Historical Significance

The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution is an opera buffa (comic opera) in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini.

Key People

Gioachino Rossini

Musician

Italian opera composer

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Events Before

  1. Leading Romantic poet Lord Byron (27) marries Anne Isabella Milbanke (22) by special licence, at Seaham Hall in County D

    Leading Romantic poet Lord Byron (27) marries Anne Isabella Milbanke (22) by special licence, at Seaham Hall in County Durham

  2. Burned US Library of Congress re-established with Thomas Jefferson's 6,500 volumes

    Burned US Library of Congress re-established with Thomas Jefferson's 6,500 volumes

  3. Napoléon Bonaparte and his supporters leave Elba to start a 100-day reconquest of France

    Napoléon Bonaparte and his supporters leave Elba to start a 100-day reconquest of France

  4. Napoleon Bonaparte enters Paris after his escape from Elba and begins his 100-day rule

    Napoleon Bonaparte enters Paris after his escape from Elba and begins his 100-day rule

  5. Mount Tambora in the Dutch East Indies experiences a cataclysmic eruption, one of the most powerful in history, killing

    Mount Tambora in the Dutch East Indies experiences a cataclysmic eruption, one of the most powerful in history, killing around 71,000 people and causing a global volcanic winter

Events After

  1. Argentine General José de San Martín leads a revolutionary army over the Andes to attack Spanish royalists in Chile

    Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, extending along a narrow strip of land...

  2. Gioachino Rossini's opera "La Cenerentola" (Cinderella) premieres at Rome's Teatro Valle

    La Cenerentola, ossia La bontà in trionfo ("Cinderella, or Goodness Triumphant") is an operatic dramma giocoso in two acts by Gioachino Rossini.

  3. The New York Stock Exchange is founded

    The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "the Big Board") is an American stock exchange headquartered at the New York Stock Exchange Building in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New…

  4. Tsar of Russia, Nicholas I (21) weds Alexandra Feodorovna [Princess Charlotte] (19) at the Grand Church of the Winter Pa

    Tsar of Russia, Nicholas I (21) weds Alexandra Feodorovna [Princess Charlotte] (19) at the Grand Church of the Winter Palace in St Petersburg, Russia

  5. Alexander Twilight, likely the first African American to graduate from a US college, receives a BA degree from Middlebur

    Alexander Twilight, likely the first African American to graduate from a US college, receives a BA degree from Middlebury College

More from the 1810s

Leading Romantic poet Lord Byron (27) marries Anne Isabella Milbanke (22) by special licence, at Seaham Hall in County D

Leading Romantic poet Lord Byron (27) marries Anne Isabella Milbanke (22) by special licence, at Seaham Hall in County Durham

Field Marshal Blücher's troops cross the Rhine at Kaub

Field Marshal Blücher's troops cross the Rhine at Kaub

US Vice President John C. Calhoun (28) weds Floride Bonneau (19)

US Vice President John C. Calhoun (28) weds Floride Bonneau (19)

French church annuls marriage of Napoleon I and Empress Joséphine

Joséphine Bonaparte was the first wife of Emperor Napoleon I and as such Empress of the French from 18 May 1804 until their marriage was annulled on 10 January 1810.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on February 20, 1816?
The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution is an opera buffa (comic opera) in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's French comedy The Barber of Seville (1775). The premiere of Rossini's opera (under the title Almaviva, o sia L'inutile precauzione) took place on 20 February 1816 at the Teatro Argentina, Rome, with designs by Angelo Toselli.
Why is Gioachino Rossini's comic opera "Barber of Seville" premieres at the Teatro A... significant?
The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution is an opera buffa (comic opera) in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini.
Who was involved in Gioachino Rossini's comic opera "Barber of Seville" premieres at the Teatro A...?
Key figures include Gioachino Rossini (Musician).

Explore More

February 20 in HistoryYear 1816