Royal Swedish Opera architect Carl Fredrik Adelcrantz was commissioned by King Gustav III, a strong adherent of the ideal of an enlightened absolutism and as such was a great patron of the arts. The Swedish Opera company had first been located in Bollhuset, but there was a need to separate the Opera from the theatre and give them separate buildings. Construction began in 1775 and the theatre was inaugurated on 30 September 1782 with a performance of the German composer Johann Gottlieb Naumann's "Cora och Alonzo". It was also the place for public masquerade balls, events inspired from the famous opera-balls in Paris,
Gustavo III (Verdi) the opera. Basing it as he did on the skeleton score of "Una vendetta", Verdi transformed the setting and characters' names to fit the requirements. The score's text required modification to agree with "Ballo" and not "Una vendetta", orchestration was completed, and musical changes and adjustments were made. Significant changes in the music occurred after 11 September and are also detailed by Gossett. The first performance of the new opera was presented on 17 February 1859. By about 1870, after "Ballo" had become successful and when Italian unification removed much of regional censorship, Verdi could probably have returned the opera