Patrie!
Set in 16th-century Brussels, the opera dramatizes a revolt of Flemish nobles. It adapts Victorien Sardou’s play of the same title.
Operas
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Pauline is a four-act opera with music by Frederic H. Cowen and a libretto by Henry Hersee, adapted from Edward Bulwer-Lytton's 1838 play The Lady of Lyons.
Pauline
Set in Vancouver in March 1913, this two-act chamber opera concerns the final days of Canadian writer and performer Pauline Johnson.
Pecan Summer
An English- and Yorta Yorta-language opera based on the 1939 Cummeragunja walk-off, in which the composer’s grandparents were involved. Its timeline moves between Dreamtime, the Murray and Yarra riverbanks, Shepparton, and the site of the 2008 national apology.
Pedro de Zalamea
A four-act grand opera adapted from Calderón’s The Mayor of Zalamea. The entry does not describe the plot.
Peer Gynt
Werner Egk’s German-language operatic adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s play Peer Gynt.
Pelagio
Set in Gijón and Asturias in the eighth century, the opera centers on Asturian king Pelagio and his daughter Bianca, who was raised by Giralda after her father was believed dead. Bianca loves Abdel-Aor, Moorish governor of Gijón, and Pelagio curses her. Abdel-Aor ultimately kills Bianca after believing she is betraying him to help her father.
Pelléas et Mélisande
Prince Golaud finds Mélisande lost in a forest, marries her, and brings her to his grandfather’s castle. Mélisande grows close to Golaud’s younger half-brother Pelléas, provoking Golaud’s jealousy. Golaud forces his son Yniold to spy on them and later catches the pair confessing their love. He kills Pelléas with his sword. Mélisande gives birth to a daughter but dies soon after, while Golaud begs her to explain what happened.
Penthesilea
After Achilles defeats the Amazon queen Penthesilea, he pretends she defeated him so that Amazon law will allow their relationship. When she discovers the truth, her love turns to hatred. Achilles offers another duel unarmed, hoping she will win, but Penthesilea kills him in her fury.
Pepita Jiménez
Widowed Pepita, now wealthy, loves Don Luis, a young theological student and son of the respected Don Pedro. Pepita’s maid Antoñona tells Don Pedro about their love; he puts aside his own feelings for Pepita and tries to help them. Don Luis resolves to resist love and leave, but Antoñona makes him promise to see Pepita once more. He challenges Count Genazahar to a duel after the Count insults her. When the wounded Count is defeated, Pepita fears Luis’s religious calling will separate them and locks herself in her room. Luis breaks in, and they embrace.
Perelà, uomo di fumo
Perelà is a man made of smoke who forms over thirty-three years in the fireplace tended by three women. When he finds the hearth abandoned, he names himself from their names, puts on boots to anchor himself, and travels to a nearby city. At court, people admire his lightness and ask him to devise a new legal code; Marchesa Olivia falls in love with him. After Alloro sets himself on fire hoping to emulate Perelà, Alloro’s daughter accuses Perelà of murder. He is imprisoned, but removes his boots and escapes through the cell chimney, floating into the sky.
Perfect Lives
Narrator R follows lounge singer Raoul, pianist Buddy, and Isolde as they plan a bank robbery intended as a philosophical gesture. The seven episodes circle the plan, a missing bank deposit, and an eloping couple who carry money to Indiana for a wedding, while the work interweaves Midwestern scenes, evangelical imagery, and nonlinear reflections on identity.
Persée
Persée loves Andromède, who is betrothed to her uncle Phinée. He sets out to defeat Medusa, using gifts from the gods to kill her without looking directly at her. When Juno and Neptune threaten Andromède with a sea monster, Persée saves her. At their wedding, Mérope warns Persée of Phinée’s plot but is killed; Persée turns Phinée to stone, and Venus restores peace.
Persée
A three-act tragédie lyrique reworking Quinault’s libretto for Lully, with mythological characters including Perseus, Andromeda, Medusa, Cepheus and Cassiopeia.
Persée et Andromède
Jacques Ibert’s two-act French-language opera takes Perseus and Andromeda as its subject. The available text does not provide the plot.
Peter Grimes
In a Suffolk coastal village around 1830, fisherman Peter Grimes is questioned after his apprentice dies at sea. The inquest rules the death accidental, but the townspeople remain suspicious. Grimes takes another apprentice, John, and hopes to marry schoolmistress Ellen Orford if he can gain the Borough’s respect. When Ellen finds a bruise on John, Grimes strikes her and takes the boy away. John dies after falling from a cliff as they hurry to their boat. The villagers later search for Grimes; Captain Balstrode tells him to sail out and sink his boat. The next morning, the town resumes its routine and dismisses a coastguard report of a sinking boat.
Peter Ibbetson
Peter Ibbetson and Mary, childhood friends, recognize one another again as adults and share a gift for “dreaming true,” meeting in dreams across place and time. Peter accidentally kills the Colonel after learning he is his father, and is sentenced to prison; Mary secures a commutation, allowing them to meet in dreams until her death and Peter’s.
Peter Schmoll und seine Nachbarn
An early German opera by Carl Maria von Weber, based on a novel by Carl Gottlob Cramer. Its libretto has not survived, and the plot is not documented here.
Peter und Ännchen
One-act German Singspiel adapted from Annette et Lubin. The underlying story concerns two orphaned cousins who fall in love and seek permission to marry; this entry does not describe how the opera handles that story.
Phaedra
Phaedra falls in love with her stepson Hippolytus, but after he rejects her she joins Aphrodite in seeking revenge and falsely accuses him to Theseus. Hippolytus dies, and Artemis resurrects him at Nemi under the name Virbius, where he struggles with a fragmented sense of identity before becoming King of the Woods.
Phaëton
Ambitious Phaëton abandons his lover Theona in pursuit of Libya, daughter of the Egyptian king. When Epaphus challenges his claim to be the Sun’s son, Phaëton persuades his father to let him drive the sun chariot. He loses control of the horses and threatens the earth with fire, so Jupiter strikes down the chariot and Phaëton falls to his death.
Phi-Phi
Sculptor Phidias selects Aspasie as a model for Virtue, while his wife becomes involved with Prince Ardimédon. After mistaken pairings, gambling losses, and shifting sculpture models, the characters reconcile and complete a group celebrating domestic happiness.
Philemon und Baucis, oder Jupiters Reise auf die Erde
In Phrygia, Philemon and Baucis prepare their son Aret and Narcissa’s wedding while Mercury watches the village’s increasingly depraved behavior. The gods send a storm that kills the young couple. Later, Jupiter and Mercury arrive disguised as wanderers, and the old couple welcome them; moved by their hospitality and grief, the gods revive Aret and Narcissa and turn the hut into a temple.
Philomèle
A tragédie en musique based on the story of Philomela as told in Ovid’s Metamorphoses.
Philémon et Baucis
Jupiter visits the poor but contented couple Philémon and Baucis during a storm he has caused. Pleased by their kindness and angered by the impious people nearby, he spares them and destroys the others. He grants the couple youth again, then pursues Baucis, who remains faithful despite being tempted by his attention. Philémon curses the gift and leaves. Baucis begs Jupiter to punish her instead, and asks to grow old again with her husband. Philémon joins her plea, and Jupiter blesses their marriage and promises not to disturb their happiness.
Phou-oibi, the Rice Goddess
This Meitei-language ballad opera draws on Meitei mythology and folklore. It presents divine narratives of goddesses associated with fish, land, metal, water, wealth, and rice, sent to earth to help human civilization. Rice goddess Phouoibi meets Akongjamba in the ancient kingdom of Moirang, and they fall in love.
Phèdre
A three-act opera based on Phaedra’s obsessive love for her stepson Hippolytus in Greek mythology.
Pia de' Tolomei
Ghino desires Pia, the wife of his cousin Nello, and uses a discovered message to accuse her of infidelity. He finds her helping her brother Rodrigo escape, and Nello imprisons her; Ghino later learns the truth and confesses, but Nello’s order to poison Pia has already been carried out. As she dies, Pia forgives Nello and reconciles him with Rodrigo.
Pickwick
Mrs Bardell loves Pickwick, while Baker competes for her affection. Pickwick’s suggestion that he employ a manservant is mistaken for a marriage proposal, leading to a sequence of misunderstandings and a confrontation with Baker.
Pierre le Grand
Tsar Peter disguises himself as a carpenter to work in a Russian shipyard, where he falls in love with and marries the peasant Catherine, later Empress Catherine I. The opera presents the royal couple as ideal rulers concerned with ordinary people, reflecting hopes during the French Revolution that Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette would follow their example.
Pierrette et Jacquot
Button merchant Cyrille Durand has taken in Jacquot and helped Pierrette, unaware that Jacquot arranged for Pierrette to come to Paris so they could marry. They dress as Savoyards to win Durand’s consent, but he plans to marry Pierrette himself. A false report of a drowning sends Durand rushing out; after he returns soaked, Madame Patacha persuades him to approve the young couple’s marriage and marry her himself.
Pigmalion
The sculptor Pigmalion falls in love with the statue he has made and asks Venus to bring it to life, spurning his girlfriend Céphise. The statue animates, sings, and dances; Cupid praises Pigmalion’s artistry and finds another lover for Céphise. The work ends with celebrations of love.
Pimmalione
The sculptor Pygmalion falls in love with his statue Galatea. Venus and Cupid bring the statue to life; Galatea returns his love and they celebrate their wedding.
Pimpinone
The chambermaid Vespetta wheedles her way into marrying her employer, the elderly Pimpinone. After the marriage, she reveals a sharp temper and completely dominates him.
Pinocchio
Philippe Boesmans’s French-language opera adapts Carlo Collodi’s novel The Adventures of Pinocchio. The available text does not provide further plot details.
Pinotta
Baldo, a worker, and Pinotta, a hand-spinner in Andrea’s workshop, fall in love and marry.
Pique Dame
Impoverished composer Emil loves Hedwig, daughter of a wealthy widow. Hedwig is also pursued by her guardian Fabian Muker, who wants her fortune. With help from Judith, a fortune-teller and Emil’s foster mother, Emil and Hedwig marry, and Fabian is revealed to be Emil’s uncle.
Pirame et Thisbé
A prologue and five-act tragédie en musique based on the story of Pyramus and Thisbe in Ovid’s Metamorphoses.
Piramo e Tisbe
Based on the Pyramus and Thisbe story, this opera presents their love as a sentimental tragedy. After Tisbe’s father forbids their relationship, both lovers kill themselves. The father, blaming himself for their deaths, also takes his own life.
Pirithoüs
A prologue and five-act tragédie en musique named for Pirithous, king in Greek mythology.
Pizarre, ou La conquête de Pérou
On her wedding day to Zamore, Alzire has an ominous dream before Spanish ships arrive. Pizarro’s forces defeat the Peruvians and destroy their temple. Pizarro, who loves Alzire, offers her father Atabaliba restoration as king in exchange for her hand and threatens captive Zamore. Atabaliba and Zamore plot revolt. In the final confrontation, Alzire protects Pizarro and threatens suicide; Pizarro grants her to Zamore, and the opera ends in reconciliation and celebration.
Plameny
In a surreal sequence of scenes, Don Juan seeks to seduce women while longing for Death, personified as La Morte. He kills the Commendatore and loses Donna Anna, then embraces La Morte, who finally passes his test but curses him to eternal life. Don Juan shoots himself, transforms into a young man, and returns to the opening scene to repeat his cycle.
Platée
To cure Juno’s jealousy, the gods arrange for Jupiter to pretend to love Platée, an ugly marsh nymph who believes everyone is attracted to her. Jupiter disguises himself as animals before appearing as a god, and a mock wedding is arranged. Juno discovers the ruse and realizes her jealousy was misplaced; the gods return to heaven and the humiliated Platée dives back into her pond.
Plutus
In ancient Greece, Xinthias loves Myrrha, but her father intends her to marry the wealthy older Xénon. Following an oracle’s advice, Xinthias shelters Plutus, god of wealth, who makes him rich by diverting a gold-bearing river through his house and village. The new wealth corrupts the villagers and leads Xinthias’s father to forbid his son’s marriage. Plutus ultimately restores the lovers and their neighbors to poverty and happiness.
Poet Li Bai
A Chinese-language chamber opera on the subject of poet Li Bai, with fragmentary allusions to his poetry.
Polifemo
Polifemo desires Galatea, who loves the mortal Aci. He kills Aci, but the gods restore him as a river deity. Meanwhile, Calipso helps Ulisse escape Polifemo’s control; Ulisse blinds the sleeping cyclops. Polifemo wanders in rage while Aci, Galatea, and Ulisse celebrate.
Poliuto
In Roman-ruled Melitene around 259 CE, magistrate Poliuto joins the Christians and is baptized. His wife Paolina, who had been told her former lover Severo died in battle, learns that Severo has returned. Poliuto suspects an affair but turns from revenge when his fellow Christian Nearco is arrested. At the Temple of Jupiter, Poliuto reveals his faith and smashes the pagan altar. Facing execution, he and Paolina reconcile; she converts and asks to die with him. They go with the condemned Christians to the arena.
Polixène
After the Trojan War, Pyrrhus, son of Achilles, wants to marry the Trojan princess Polyxena. Juno and Polyxena’s mother, Hecuba, oppose the match, and Hecuba urges Pyrrhus’s rival Telephus to kill him. Telephus refuses, so Hecuba has him killed instead. She is eventually reconciled to Pyrrhus and consents to the marriage.
Polly
Polly Peachum travels to the West Indies in search of Macheath, now a pirate living with Jenny Diver. Mrs Trapes kidnaps Polly to sell her to planter Mr Ducat; Polly disguises herself as a young man. After pirates are defeated and identities exposed, Macheath is executed and Polly marries Cawwawkee, son of the Indian king.
Polydore
Based on the legend of Polydorus, youngest son of Priam, who is murdered by Polymestor, King of Thrace, for his treasure. The original ending shows Polymnestor committing suicide onstage; after this shocked audiences, a chorus about Deidamie and Polydore’s love was inserted.
Polydorus
A five-act opera by Carl Heinrich Graun and Johann Samuel Müller, with characters including Polydorus, Andromache and Polymestor. The entry does not describe the plot.
Polyeucte
In Melitene, Armenia, Pauline is married to Polyeucte but once loved Roman general Sévère. When Sévère returns, Pauline confides in him that Polyeucte is in danger because Christians are to be executed. Polyeucte becomes a Christian despite the threat of persecution. Governor Félix orders vengeance, and Sévère cannot persuade Polyeucte to deny his faith. Polyeucte remains imprisoned and appears with Pauline in the arena as the lion’s den is opened.
Polyphème
Polyphème is embittered because Galatée, whom he loves, now loves Acis. He tries to renew his bond with her but lets her go when she rejects him. As the lovers grow closer, Polyphème obsessively questions the boy Lycas about their intimacy. When he sees them sleeping together, he chooses not to crush them with a boulder, blinds himself, and walks toward the sea, with Lycas helping him touch Galatée one last time.
Polyxène et Pirrhus
A prologue and five-act tragédie lyrique concerning the mythological figures Polyxena and Pyrrhus (Neoptolemus).
Pomme d'api
Rabastens disapproves of his nephew Gustave’s romance with Pomme d’api and cuts off his allowance. When Catherine arrives as a new maid, Gustave recognizes his former beloved, who tests his devotion by letting Rabastens court her. Gustave prepares to leave, Catherine embraces him, and Rabastens relents and blesses their marriage.
Pomone
Vertumne loves Pomone while her nurse Beroé loves Vertumne. Vertumne attempts to win Pomone through disguises as a dragon, Pluto and Bacchus, succeeding only when he appears as Beroé, whom Pomone cannot refuse a kiss.
Pompeo Magno
This three-act Italian dramma per musica features Pompey the Great and other historical figures, including Sextus Pompey, Mithridates, Julius Caesar, and Crassus.
Pontalba
The opera loosely dramatizes the life of Micaela Almonester, Baroness de Pontalba, including her marriage to Célestin, confinement at the de Pontalba château, survival of her father-in-law’s shooting attack, legal separation and return to New Orleans. The work also includes fictional characters and changes historical details.
Por amor y por lealtad recobrar la majestad
A distinct setting or adaptation of Pietro Metastasio’s Demetrio libretto by Giovanni Battista Mele. Two-act adaptation premiered on 31 January 1736 at Teatro de la Cruz, Madrid; libretto adapted by D. Vincente de Camacho. No version-specific plot is supplied.
Porgy and Bess
In Charleston, disabled street beggar Porgy tries to protect Bess from Crown, her violent lover, and Sportin’ Life, a drug dealer. After Crown kills Robbins and flees, Bess takes shelter with Porgy. She later encounters Crown on Kittiwah Island, then returns to Porgy; during a hurricane, Crown reappears and Porgy kills him. When Porgy is released from jail, he learns Bess has left for New York with Sportin’ Life and sets out to find her.
Porin
A Croatian grand opera by Vatroslav Lisinski to a text by Dimitrija Demeter.
Poro, re dell’Indie
After Alexander conquers India, King Poro disguises himself to avoid capture, while his wife Cleofide seeks mercy and his sister Erissena attracts Alexander and his general. Jealousy, disguises, attempted suicide, and shifting alliances lead to Cleofide’s planned self-immolation; Poro returns, and Alexander forgives the couple and makes peace.
Postcard from Morocco
Passengers waiting in a train station reveal what they do but keep the contents of their luggage secret. A puppet master who seems to live in the station tries to manipulate them. The passengers leave one by one, except Mr. Owen, who acts out a story about sailing away and breaks the puppet master’s hold. The puppet master retains control of the Foreign Singer in the final moments.
Powder Her Face
In a hotel in 1990, staff mock the Duchess and later evict her for unpaid bills. Earlier scenes revisit her marriage, affairs, and sensational 1950s divorce proceedings. In the final scene she attempts to seduce the hotel manager but fails; after she leaves, the electrician and maid emerge from under the bed and destroy the room.
Pozdvižení v Efesu
Iša Krejčí’s Czech opéra bouffe adapts Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors. The work was written between 1939 and 1943 and received wartime radio performances.
Preußisches Märchen
An opera buffa with simultaneous ballet by Boris Blacher, based on the real-life Captain of Köpenick story and Carl Zuckmayer’s play. Heinz von Cramer wrote the libretto. No plot description is available in the reviewed text.
Prima Donna
On Bastille Day 1970, opera soprano Régine Saint Laurent prepares to return to the stage after six years away, following a vocal failure during a performance of an opera composed for her. Her butler Philippe encourages the comeback and an interview. Journalist and aspiring singer André Le Tourner arrives; the maid Marie distrusts him. Régine notices André resembles the tenor who sang opposite her in her earlier opera. As Régine and André become infatuated and sing selections from that score together, she relives the premiere and her later breakdown, reaching a decision about her return.
Prima la musica e poi le parole
A composer has completed music for a new opera, but its poet cannot finish the words. Their work is disrupted by a prima donna and a comic singer competing for the opening aria; the composer and poet resolve the quarrel by combining seria and buffa styles.
Prince Igor
Prince Igor sets out from Putivl to fight the Polovtsians despite a solar eclipse that Yaroslavna sees as a bad omen. His army is defeated, and Igor and his son Vladimir are captured. In Khan Konchak’s camp, Vladimir falls in love with Konchakovna; Igor refuses an offer of freedom in exchange for a promise not to fight again. Igor escapes with help from Ovlur, while Vladimir stays behind and marries Konchakovna. Igor returns to Putivl and reunites with Yaroslavna.
Princess Ida
Prince Hilarion travels to Castle Adamant with friends Cyril and Florian to claim Princess Ida, to whom he was betrothed in infancy. Ida has founded a women’s university and rejects men. The three men disguise themselves as female students, but Cyril’s drunken song exposes them. After Hilarion rescues Ida from a stream, she still refuses him. King Hildebrand arrives and threatens war unless Ida marries Hilarion. Ida’s students are too frightened to fight, so she agrees to a contest between Hilarion and his friends and her three brothers. The princes win, and Ida accepts Hilarion, acknowledging that she loves him.
Prinsessan av Cypern
Lemminkäinen travels to Cyprus and carries Princess Chryseis back to Finland. A blind shepherd later kills him, and his mother restores him to life through prayer.
Prinsessan av Cypern
Lemminkäinen abducts Princess Chryseis from Cyprus, and she becomes Kyllikki in his northern home. Their strained marriage ends when she leaves for Medon’s ship and Lemminkäinen goes to battle; after he is murdered, his mother descends to Tuonela and frees him through her song.
Prinzessin Brambilla
A German-language opera by Walter Braunfels, adapted from E. T. A. Hoffmann’s novella of the same name. Its roles include the actor Claudio and young seamstress Giazinta.
Prism
Bibi, a sickly child, lives in a seemingly safe room with her protective mother Lumee. In fragmented memories of their past, the audience sees that Lumee abandoned Bibi in a club, where Bibi was sexually assaulted. The final act reveals the first act’s sanctuary as a fabrication: both women are traumatized, and Lumee tries to make Bibi forget. Bibi wants to face what happened and leave the room, beginning a process of healing.
Proces Kafka
Poul Ruders’s opera combines scenes from Franz Kafka’s unfinished novel The Trial with letters from Kafka’s life concerning Felice Bauer and Grete Bloch. The libretto was written by Paul Bentley and translated into Danish by Karen Hoffmann.
Prometheus
A five-scene scenic oratorio in which Prometheus, chained to a rock by Zeus, prophesies that a savior of mankind will appear after ten generations.
Prometheus
Chained to a rock in the Caucasus for giving fire and knowledge to humanity, Prometheus refuses to tell Zeus the secret that could threaten his rule. He recounts his gifts to humankind and foretells Zeus’s eventual fall. Io visits and learns of her future journey; when Prometheus continues to refuse Hermes’s demand, Zeus’s thunderbolt sends him into Hades.
Prométhée
After Prométhée gives humanity fire, Zeus condemns him to be chained to a rock. Pandore initially opposes Prométhée, then revives after being carried in a funeral procession. In the final act, she accepts a box from Zeus despite Prométhée’s warning and discovers that her tears have become a healing balsam.
Proserpin
In Sicily, Pluto abducts Proserpin, daughter of Ceres. Ceres’s grief disrupts the harvest, and the mortal Atis and nymph Cyane journey to the underworld. Jupiter decrees that Proserpin will alternate between living with him and her mother, then blesses her marriage to Pluto and restores reconciliation.
Proserpina rapita
At the request of an enamored shepherd, Pluto turns Pachino into a mountain and promises him a place in Elysium. Cupid’s arrow then makes Pluto fall for Proserpine, whom he claims as queen. When her protector Ciane is transformed into a spring, Proserpine submits; Pluto is softened by her beauty and promises to treat lovers less harshly.
Proserpine
Based on Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Lully and Quinault’s opera centers on Pluto’s abduction of Proserpine. It also includes subplots involving Ceres and Jupiter, and Alpheus and Arethusa.
Proserpine
The opera concentrates on Pluto's abduction of Proserpine. Guillard's libretto reduces Quinault's five-act source to three acts and focuses on the main plot.
Proserpine
A four-act French drame lyrique by Camille Saint-Saëns based on Auguste Vacquerie’s play, with a story set in Italy.
Psohlavci
The opera is based on Alois Jirásek’s Psohlavci, concerning the Dogheads of Chodsko and their 1695 rebellion over ancient privileges.
Psyché
Venus sends Cupid to punish Psyché, whom mortals revere as a rival. Cupid falls in love with her instead, but Venus later reveals his identity and drives Psyché from her palace. She sends her to the underworld for Proserpine’s beauty, and Psyché is killed by a poisonous vapour from the box she brings back. Jupiter restores her to life and makes her immortal, uniting the lovers.
Puck
Loosely based on A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Delannoy’s stage work combines opera-comique elements, dance and spoken theatre. Puck is danced, while Titania, Oberon and the lovers and craftsmen populate the vocal and acting roles.
Puntila
An opera by Paul Dessau based on Bertolt Brecht’s play Mr Puntila and His Man Matti.
Puss in Boots
A three-act fairytale opera for children, closely following Charles Perrault’s story. It follows the Cat and Jean, the miller’s youngest son, who becomes the Marquis de Carabas; the characters also include a King, a Princess, an Ogre, and Jean’s two older brothers.
Putao xianzi
Li Jinhui’s Chinese children’s opera, titled The Grape Fairy; a revised and expanded version was staged in Shanghai in 1927.
Pygmalion
Pygmalion, having renounced women, falls in love with the statue he has made, Galatea. Venus brings Galatea to life, giving Pygmalion happiness.
Pyramus and Thisbe
Pyramus and Thisbe arrange a meeting through a chink in the Wall, at Ninus’s tomb. Thisbe arrives first but is frightened away by the Lion. Pyramus finds her scarf, assumes she is dead, and stabs himself; Thisbe returns and does likewise. The impresario, Mr Semibrief, revives them in time to sing the epilogue. Spoken comments by Semibrief and two gentlemen interrupt the burlesque of Italian opera.
Pyrrhus
A tragédie en musique about Pyrrhus, also known as Neoptolemus, son of Achilles, based on Greek myth.
Pyrrhus and Demetrius
Demetrius seizes the Macedonian throne after murdering Alexander and plans to invade Asia. Ptolemy, Seleucus, and Lysimachus form an alliance against him, joined by Pyrrhus of Epirus. Pyrrhus drives Demetrius from the throne and replaces him, but Lysimachus later drives Pyrrhus away.
Pénélope
A three-act tragédie lyrique based on the story of Odysseus and Penelope in Homer’s Odyssey.
Pénélope
Penelope has waited ten years for the return of Ulysses, King of Ithaca, while suitors press her to marry. She says she will choose once she finishes weaving a shroud for Laertes, but unpicks it every night. Ulysses returns disguised as a beggar and is recognized by his nurse Euryclea. He tells Penelope’s suitors they must win her hand by drawing his bow. None succeeds; Ulysses draws it easily and kills the suitors with help from the shepherds. He and Penelope reunite.
Pépito
In a Basque village, innkeeper Manuelita waits for her fiancé Pépito, away in military service. Her childhood friend Miguel returns and falls for her. He tries to court her, but she rejects him out of loyalty to Pépito. Impressed by her virtue, Miguel decides to enlist so Pépito can return. Vertigo then delivers a letter revealing that Pépito has married his canteen keeper. Manuelita accepts Miguel, and Vertigo agrees to play his serpent at their wedding.
Queen of Knives
Set in a traveling carnival during early-1960s student protests in Birmingham, Alabama, this two-act opera follows a brother and sister who perform as a knife-throwing act.
Queenie Pie
Harlem beautician Queenie Pie, named best in town, faces a challenge from Café O’Lay, who wins the love of Queenie’s manager Holt Faye and kills him in a quarrel. Queenie travels to a magic island seeking a flower, meets a king and witch doctor, and eventually reconciles with Café O’Lay.
Radamisto
Tiridate, king of Armenia, wages war to possess Zenobia, wife of Prince Radamisto. Radamisto and Zenobia flee, are captured, and face repeated threats as Tiridate pursues her. When his army and people rebel, Tiridate releases the couple, seeks his wife Polissena’s forgiveness, and promises to rule justly.
Radvila Perkūnas
Set during the life of Krzysztof “Piorun” Radziwiłł, the four-act opera concerns rivalry between Lithuania’s powerful Radvila and Chodkiewicz families, which nearly leads to civil war. The entry does not supply further plot details.
Ragnheiður
In seventeenth-century Skálholt, bishop Brynjólfur makes his daughter Ragnheiður publicly swear she is a virgin despite rumors of her affair with her teacher Daði. After she becomes pregnant, Daði leaves to plead his case, and Ragnheiður is publicly absolved but separated from her child; she dies in 1663. Ten years later, Daði learns at her grave that their son has also died.
Rain
An opera by Richard Owen based on Somerset Maugham’s short story Rain. Its original 1997 version was titled Sadie Thompson; a revised version titled Rain premiered in 2003.
Ran
Three-act opera named for the Norse sea goddess Rán and drawing on Nordic mythology. The entry does not provide a plot summary or premiere information.
Raphael
A one-act opera depicting the Renaissance artist Raphael, with Fornarina, his model and mistress, among the central characters.
Rappaccini's Daughter
In Padua, Giovanni rents a room and falls in love with Beata, daughter of Dr. Rappaccini, who has experimented on her with poisonous plants. Giovanni falls ill, and his friend Baglioni gives him a potion intended to cure both Giovanni and Beata. Beata knows the cure will kill her, but drinks it and dies as her father returns.
Rasputin
After Rasputin comforts the hemophiliac Tsarevich Alexei, Tsarina Alexandra sees him as a healer and his influence grows. Felix Yusupov and allies plot to kill him, while Rasputin’s power and behavior provoke fear and hostility. He survives a stabbing and poisoning before being shot by the conspirators; Alix foresees the Romanovs’ fate.
Raymond and Agnes
Raymond seeks to rescue Agnes from her guardian, the Baron of Lindenberg, who plans to marry her. Raymond discovers the Baron murdered his father and imprisoned his mother; he and Agnes escape, but are recaptured. In the final confrontation, the Baron is accidentally shot, and the mute Ravella regains her speech and is revealed as Raymond’s mother.
Raymond, ou Le Secret de la reine
Raymond, a young peasant in love with the orphan Stelle, is discovered to be the twin brother of Louis XIV and persecuted as a threat to the king’s reign. Raymond and Stelle escape when the Chevalier de Rosargues sacrifices himself by taking Raymond’s place behind the iron mask.
Re Enzo
Set in Bologna in the second half of the 13th century, the opera centers on Enzo, King of Sardinia, captured by Bologna’s army at the Battle of Fossalta and held in the palace later named Palazzo Re Enzo. The city’s women fall in love with him and wish to free him, creating conflict with their husbands.
Red Guards on Honghu Lake
When a landlord and Kuomintang forces attack the Honghu base, Han Ying and Liu Chuang lead the Red Guards in retreat and counterattack. Han is arrested while rescuing villagers, but escapes with help from Lieutenant Zhang, who is killed; she later leads the Guards to victory.
Regina
Workers strike at Simon’s factory, where his daughter Regina is betrothed to foreman Richard. Another foreman, Stephan, joins political insurgents and occupies the factory. Fighting sets the factory ablaze, and Stephan kidnaps Regina. She tries to change his mind, but he later threatens to blow up an ammunition dump where they are hiding. Regina shoots him before he can act. The workers celebrate liberty, and Richard and the chorus close with a song for a united democratic Germany.
Regina
In the Deep South in 1900, Regina Giddens schemes with her brothers for wealth and power. Her husband Horace opposes their plans, so Regina withholds his heart medicine and he dies. Their daughter Alexandra realizes what happened and leaves Regina, who is left rich but isolated after also double-crossing her brothers.
Regina Diaz
In Naples around 1700, rebel Mario Sanseverino entrusts compromising letters from his lover Regina, wife of Spanish governor Ferrante Diaz, to Friar Benedetto. After the rebellion is uncovered, Ferrante first offers Mario exile, but later discovers Regina’s betrayal. Ferrante kills Mario in a duel and sends Regina to a convent.
Reigen
A ten-scene chain of encounters between a sex worker, soldier, parlor maid, young gentleman, young wife, husband, young woman, poet, singer, and count, ending where the cycle began.
Rembrandt’s Wife
The opera explores Rembrandt’s relationships with Saskia van Uylenburgh, Geertje Dircx, and Hendrickje Stoffels: his wife’s death, his former lover’s madness, and the arrival of his future muse.
Renard
In this burlesque farmyard tale, the Fox deceives and captures the Cock twice, but the Cat and Ram rescue him each time. After the second rescue, the three friends strangle the Fox and celebrate. The Fox wears a nun’s black gown in an ironic allusion to religious inviolability.
Renaud
Princess and sorceress Armide loves the crusader Renaud and uses magic to make him love her. When he is freed from her spell, she first vows revenge, then warns him of an ambush. After battle, Armide attempts suicide, but Renaud saves her and reconciles with her when her father reveals that Renaud spared his life.
Renaud, ou La suite d’Armide
A prologue and five-act tragédie en musique, sequel to Lully’s Armide and based on Tasso’s Gerusalemme liberata.
Resurrection
A mute child is subjected to pressure from his family, authority figures and television advertisements until his head explodes. Surgeons then attempt to reconstruct him and reshape his social, religious and sexual attitudes. When the Antichrist appears and the child is resurrected, he turns against the surgeons.
Reuben, Reuben
Reuben, a suicidal veteran unable to speak, wanders through Little Italy during one night. He meets Nina, who thinks he is trying to rescue her from a bridge jump; their relationship grows as the manipulative bartender Bart tries to push Reuben toward suicide. After a dangerous encounter and time in a mental institution, Reuben and Nina confront Bart and decide to begin again.
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