About the work
Melodramma giocoso in two acts by Gaetano Donizetti to a libretto by Jacopo Ferretti, freely based on a text by Antonio Simeone Sografi, first performed on 7 January 1827 at the Teatro Valle in Rome. For a Naples production later that September, Donizetti rewrote Camillo's part from contralto to tenor — a casting adjustment typical of the period.
Plot
In Lisbon, the wealthy merchant Olivo opposes his daughter Isabella's love for the penniless clerk Camillo and instead wants to marry her off to the rich Le Bross. Only when the young couple threaten a staged double suicide does the more conciliatory brother Pasquale tip the balance, prompting Olivo to relent and bless their union.
Cultural significance
As an early work from Donizetti's Roman period, this opera buffa already shows his comic flair for ensemble scenes, though it remained clearly overshadowed by his later buffo successes such as "Don Pasquale".