Franz Mesmer summers he lived on a splendid estate and became a patron of the arts. In 1768, when court intrigue prevented the performance of "La finta semplice" (K. 51), for which the twelve-year-old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had composed 500 pages of music, Mesmer is said to have arranged a performance in his garden of Mozart's "Bastien und Bastienne" (K. 50), a one-act opera, though Mozart's biographer Nissen found no proof that this performance actually took place. Mozart later immortalized his former patron by including a comedic reference to Mesmer in his opera "Così fan tutte". In 1774, Mesmer produced an "artificial
The Stronger (opera) The Stronger (opera) The Stronger is an opera in one act by composer Hugo Weisgall. The English language libretto by Richard Henry Hart is based on August Strindberg's play of the same name. It premiered at the White Barn Theatre in Westport, Connecticut on August 9, 1952 and was dedicated to that theatre's founder, the actress Lucille Lortel. "The Stronger" is an approximately 25 minute staged duodrama that is in many respects a monologue with one singing role, Estelle (coloratura soprano), and one silent role, Lisa. The opera takes place at a bar on Christmas Eve. The two women meet