Comic opera
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Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue.
Rossini, circa 1810–1815
Poster for a 19th-century production of Orpheus in the Underworld
Scene from H.M.S. Pinafore, 1886 Savoy Theatre souvenir programme
A "toy soldier" from Babes in Toyland, 1903
Musical theatre
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Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated
Comic opera
…Examples include German singspiel, Viennese operetta, Spanish zarzuela, Russian comic opera, English ballad and Savoy opera, North American operetta and musical comedy. In late 17th-century Italy, light-hearted musical plays began to be offered as an alternative to weightier opera seria (17th-century Italian opera…
The Black Crook was a long-running musical on Broadway in 1866.
A Gaiety Girl (1893) was one of the first hit musicals.
George Gershwin
Chinese opera performers