Regieoper to be the most radically shocking to date. The inspiration for Mozart's opera was the overwhelming fascination of Europeans by all things Turkish. Orientalist elements abound in this story of a hero trying to rescue two girls from the clutches of an evil Pasha who has installed them in his harem, Seraglio. Instead of a genteel harem, Bieto has set this Abduction in a modern, garish bordello where men and women engage in extreme acts of sex and brutality. The sets consist mainly of whorehouse accoutrements, the lighting is colored and garish, and the costumes for the most part are
Opera nozze di Figaro"), "Don Giovanni", and "Così fan tutte", as well as "Die Entführung aus dem Serail" ("The Abduction from the Seraglio"), and "The Magic Flute" ("Die Zauberflöte"), landmarks in the German tradition. The first third of the 19th century saw the high point of the bel canto style, with Gioachino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti and Vincenzo Bellini all creating works that are still performed. It also saw the advent of Grand Opera typified by the works of Auber and Meyerbeer. The mid-to-late 19th century was a golden age of opera, led and dominated by Giuseppe Verdi in Italy and Richard