Héléna (opera) Héléna (opera) Héléna is an opera in three acts by the French composer Étienne Méhul. It premiered at the Opéra-Comique, Paris on 1 March 1803. The libretto is by Jean-Nicolas Bouilly. It enjoyed 36 performances in the space of 20 months before disappearing from the theatre's repertoire. Bouilly was accused of basing the plot too closely on Cherubini's "Les deux journées". According to the musicologist Elizabeth Bartlet, "several scholars have pointed out [that] Beethoven's trumpet call in "Fidelio" was inspired by Méhul's "Héléna"". Constantin, Count of Arles, has been accused of killing his father. He flees with his wife Héléna
Eithne (opera) Eithne (opera) Eithne, also known as "Éan an Cheoil Bhinn" (The Bird of Sweet Music), is considered by many critics to be the first full-scale opera written and performed in the Irish language. It was written by English/Irish composer Robert O'Dwyer. The work saw its first performance at the Round Room in Dublin's Rotunda during the Oireachtas na Gaeilge, a festival of Irish culture, in 1909, conducted by the composer. It was performed again in May 1910 at the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin. The opera, based on a Gaeilge libretto written by Galway Reverend Thomas O'Kelly, covers three acts and includes