Travesti (theatre)
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Travesti is a theatrical character in an opera, play, or ballet performed by a performer of the opposite sex.
The famous castrato Farinelli caricatured in one of his female roles
The ballerina Eugénie Fiocre as a matador circa 1860
Pierre Jélyotte as the nymph Plataea in Rameau's opera Platée
Breeches role
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A breeches role is one in which an actress appears in male clothing. Breeches, tight-fitting knee-length pants, were the standard male garment at the time these roles were introduced. The theatrical term travesti covers both this sort of cross-dressing and also that of male actors dressing as female characters. Both are part of the long history of cross-dressing in music and opera and later in film and television.
