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OPERA CHRONOLOGY (500 more operas are listed on this link) 1625 Francesca Caccini composed La Liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina in Florence, Italy 1736 Mme Duval's Les Génies was the second opera by a woman at the Paris Opéra 1740 Wihelmina, Princess of Prussia’s Argenore performed at the Court in Bayreuth, Germany 1747 Maria Teresa Agnesi’s Il restauro d’Arcadia given at Regio Ducal Teatro, Milan, Italy 1754 Maria Antonia Walpurgis, Electress of Saxony’s Il trionfo della fedeltà performed at Dresden Court 1755 Mlle Guerin’s opera Daphnis et d’Amalthée performed at Amiens, France 1760 Maria Antonia Walpurgis’s Talestri, Regina delle Amazoni performed at Nymphenburg, Germany 1766 Maria Teresa Agnesi composed L'insubria consolata 1776 Anna Amalia, Duchess of Weimar composed Erwin und Elmire, performed at Weimar, Germany 1776 Marie Emmanuelle Bayon’s opéra-comique Fleur d’épine performed at Théâtre Italien, Paris, France 1781 Henriette de Beaumesnil’s Anacréon performed at Comte de Provence Residency 1784 Henriette de Beaumesnil’s Les fétes grecques et romaines performed at the Paris Opéra, after a Court première 1786 Lucile Grétry composed comedy Le Marriage d’Antonio (based on Richard Coeur-de-Lion) 1791 Maria von Paradis melodrama Ariadne und Bacchus performed at Schlosstheater Laxenburg 1792 Maria von Paradis wrote Der Schulkandidat 1792 Julie Candeille composed Catherine ou la belle fermière for Théâtre Francais, Paris 1792 Henriette de Beaumesnil’s Plaire, c’est commander performed at Théâtre Montansier Paris 1792 Maria Theresia Ahlefeldt’s Telemak paa Calypsos Oe performed art Kongelige Teater, Copenhagen, Denmark 1797 Maria von Paradis’s Rinaldo und Alcina performed at Estates Theatre, Prague, Czechoslovakia 1797 Elizabeth, Margravine of Anspach’s The Princess of Georgia performed at Covent Garden, London, UK 1805 Mlle Le Sénéchal de Kerkado’s La méprise volontaire performed at Opéra-comique, Paris, France 1813 Sophie Gail’s Les deux jaloux performed at Opéra-comique, Paris, France 1813 Sophie Gail’s Mademoiselle de Launay á la Bastille performed at Opéra-comique, Paris, France 1814 Sophie Gail’s Angela ou l’atelier de Jean Cousin performed at Théâtre Feydeau, Paris 1816 Amalia, Princess of Saxony’s Le nozze funeste performed in Dresden, Germany 1818 Sophie Gail’s scandalous La Sérénade performed at Théâtre Feydeau, Paris, France 1822 Marianna Bottini composed Elena e Gerardo 1830 Carolina Uccelli’s Saul performed at Teatro della Pergola, Florence, Italy 1836 Loisa Puget’s Le Mauvais Oeil performed at Opéra-comique, Paris, France 1837 Pauline Viardot composed Trop de Femmes on a Turgenev libretto 1849 Felicita Casella's Haydée performed in Oporto, Portugal 1859 Marie Grandval’s Le sou de Lise performed at Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens, France 1863 Marie Grandval’s La Comtesse Eva performed in Baden-Baden, Germany 1865 Felicita Casella’s Cristofo Colombo performed at Théâtre Impérial, Nice, France 1867 Ingeborg Bronsart’s Die Gottin von Sais performed at Kronprinzliches Palace 1868 Marie Grandval’s La Pénitente performed at Salle Favart, Paris, France 1869 Marie Grandval’s Piccolino performed at Théâtre Italien, Paris, France 1869 Loisa Puget’s La Veilleuse performed at Théâtre du Gymnase Paris, France 1873 Ingeborg Bronsart’s Jery und Bately premièred in Weimar, Germany 1873 Ella Georgiyevna composed Neprigozhaya (The Boyar's Daughter) 1876 Adelaide Appignani’s Clara di Clevers performed at Teatro Nazionale, Bologna, Italy 1882 Cécile Chaminade’s La Sevillane performed in Paris 1885 Valentina Semyonova Serova’s Uriel Acosta performed at Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow, Russia 1890 Ethel Smyth’s Antony & Cleopatra staged at Crystal Palace, London, UK 1890 Eva Dell’Acqua’s La ruse de Pierrette performed in Brussels, Belgium 1891 R Ethel Harradan’s His Last Chance presented at Gaiety Theatre, London, UK 1892 Marie Grandval’s Mazeppa produced at Grand Theatre Municipal, Bordeaux, France 1892 Luisa Casagemas’s Schiava e regina won a prize at the World Colombian Exposition, Chicago, USA 1894 Gisella Delle Grazie’s Atala performed at Teatro Balbo, Turin, Italy 1894 R Ethel Harradan’s The Taboo staged at Trafalgar Square Theatre, London, UK 1895 Augusta Holmès' La Montagne Noir performed at the Paris Opéra 1899 Valentina Semyonova Serova’s Il’ya Muromets performed at Solodovnikov Theatre, Moscow, Russia 1899 Elfrida Andrée composed Fritiof’s Saga on an Icelandic myth 1902 Ethel Smyth’s Der Wald performed in Berlin, and Covent Garden, London, UK 1903 Roberta Geddes-Harvey’s La terre bonne performed at Royal Opera House, Guelph, Canada 1904 Jane Vieu’s Arlette premièred at Théâtre Royal des Galeries St Hubert, Brussels, Belgium 1904 Pauline Viardot composed Cendrillon 1906 Ethel Smyth’s Les Naufrageurs performed at Neuestheater Leipzig, and Prague, Czechoslovakia 1909 Ethel Smyth’s The Wreckers presented at His Majesty’s Theatre, London, UK 1910 Adela Maddison’s Der Talisman performed in the Stadttheater, Leipzig, Germany 1911 Mary Carr Moore’s Narcissa staged in San Francisco, Seattle and Los Angeles, USA 1913 Ethel Smyth composed The Boatswain’s Mate 1914 Hilda Sehested’s Agnete og Havmanden written for Copenhagen Kongelige Teater, Denmark 1915 Maria Rodrigo’s Becqueriana performed at Teatro de Zarzuela, Madrid, Spain 1915 Vincenza Garelli della Morea’s Incantesimo performed at Teatro Garibaldi, Padua, Italy 1916 Garelli della Morea’s Il viaggio del Perrichon performed at Teatro Alfieri, Turin, Italy 1918 Lili Boulanger finished La Princesse Maleine, on Maeterlink’s libretto 1922 Irma von Halácsy wrote Der Puppenspieler 1923 Ethel Smyth’s Fête galante performed at Repertory Theatre, Birmingham, UK 1924 Garelli della Morea’s Le nozze di Leporello staged at Teatro Social, Brescia, Italy 1925 Ethel Smyth’s Entente cordiale performed at Royal College of Music, London, UK 1927 Berta Bock’s Die Pfingstkrone presented throughout Transylvania and in 1931 in the USA 1928 Mary Carr Moore’s David Rizzio (Court of Mary Queen of Scots) performed in Los Angeles, USA 1928 Eleanor Everest Freer wrote The Masque of Pandora 1932 Amy Beach composed Cabildo, Op 149, using Creole tunes. 1935 Ethel Leginska’s Gale performed by Chicago City Opera, USA 1943 Yvonne Desportes wrote the opéra comique La Farce du Carabinier, op 50 1951 Imogen Holst composed Benedick and Beatrice 1954 Peggy Glanville-Hicks The Transposed Heads performed by Louisville Orchestra, and then in New York and Sydney 1954 Elizabeth Lutyens composed Infidelio, Op 29 1955 Freda Swain's Second Chance premièred in Bath, England 1957 Elizabeth Maconchy's The Sofa composed on a libretto by Ursula Vaughan Williams 1958 Slavá Vorlová composed Dva Svety (Two Worlds) 1959 Grazyna Bacewicz wrote Przygoda króla Artura for the radio 1962 Louise Talma’s The Alcestiad: staged in Frankfurt: the first opera by an American woman produced at a major European Opera House 1966 Grace Williams’s The Parlour performed by Welsh National Opera 1966 Phyllis Tate's The What d'ye Call it presented at the Cheltenham Festival, England 1967 Tatyana Chudova wrote O myortvoy tsarevne i semi bogatïryakh (The Dead Princess and the seven Heros) 1969 Elizabeth Maconchy wrote the masque The Jesse Tree 1971 Melanie Daikens’s Mayakovsky and the Sun commissioned by Edinburgh Festival 1971 Meredith Monk composed the opera epic Vessel 1972 Elena Firsova wrote Pir vo vremya chumï (Feast in Plague Time) 1973 Violet Archer composed the comic opera Sgaranelli (on Molière) 1973 Thea Musgrave’s The Voice of Ariadne commissioned by the Royal Opera House for Aldburgh Festival 1975 Elizabeth Maconchy composed The King of the Golden River, for children 1977 Thea Musgrave’s Mary, Queen of Scots commissioned by Scottish Opera 1979 Thea Musgrave’s A Christmas Carol performed by Virginia Opera in Norfolk 1983 Elena Petrová composed Kdyby se slunce nevrátilo (Suppose the Sun did not Return) 1984 Thea Musgrave’s Harriet, the Woman Called Moses, Royal Opera House commission, London 1985 Judith Lang Zaimont composed Goldilocks and the Three Bears 1987 Diana Burrell wrote The Albatross, after Susan Hill's novel 1988 Kazuko Hara composed The History of Yosakoi-bushi 1988 Marielli Sfakianaki wrote Minos 1990 Libby Larsen's Frankenstein or the modern Prometheus commissioned by Minnesota Opera 1990 Judith Weir’s The Vanishing Bridegroom performed by Scottish Opera, Glasgow 1991 Meredith Monk’s Atlas commissioned by Houston Grand Opera 1991 Sofia Gubaidulina composed oratorio-opera-ballet Era vodoleya (Age of Aquarius) 1992 Nicola LeFanu wrote Blood Wedding on a libretto based on Lorca, commissioned by the Women's Playhouse Trust 1992 Thea Musgrave’s Símon Bolívar commissioned by Scottish Opera & LA Music Center Opera 1993 Betty Roe composed A Flight of Pilgrims 1994 Judith Weir’s Blond Eckbert performed by ENO at the Coliseum, London 1999 Tania Leon composed Scourge of Hyacinths 2000 Sofia Gubaidulia's Passion according to St John written for the Millenium 2001 Deborah Drattell’s Nicholas & Alexander performed at Los Angeles opera (Rasputin - Placido Domingo) 2002 Victoria Bond composed Mrs Satan, about women’s rights 2003 Kaija Saariaho’s Lamour de loin premièred at Salzburg Festival 2003 Nancy van der Vate’s All quiet on the Western Front premièred in Osnabruck Germany 2003 Isidora Zebeljan commission by Genesis Foundation: Zora D. Contact Zebeljan 2006 Kaija Saariaho’s Adriana Mater premièred at Opera Bastille Paris 2010 Margaret Garwood’s The Scarlet Letter (based on Hawthorne) premièred in Philadelphia 2011 Nicola LeFanu's Dream Hunter (set in 19th C Corsica) premièred at Wilton's Music Hall London 2013 Jennifer Higdon's Cold Mountain, Santa Fe Opera & Opera Philadelphia commission (première 2015) back to top