About the work
Dramma giocoso in two acts by Vicente Martín y Soler to a libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, based on the Spanish play 'La luna de la sierra' by Luis Vélez de Guevara; first performed on 17 November 1786 at the Burgtheater in Vienna.
Plot
The young peasant girl Lilla, betrothed to the shepherd Lubino, is pursued by both the Spanish prince Giovanni and the village mayor. Only when Queen Isabella learns of their advances and intervenes can Lilla remain faithful to her betrothed and order be restored.
Cultural significance
With 78 performances, Una cosa rara became the greatest Viennese stage success of the 1780s, briefly outshining even Mozart's 'Figaro'; Mozart later quoted its melody 'O quanto un sì bel giubilo' in the finale of his 'Don Giovanni' as a nod to the work's popularity.