Opera After Verdi, the sentimental "realistic" melodrama of verismo appeared in Italy. This was a style introduced by Pietro Mascagni's "Cavalleria rusticana" and Ruggero Leoncavallo's "Pagliacci" that came to dominate the world's opera stages with such popular works as Giacomo Puccini's "La bohème", "Tosca", and "Madama Butterfly". Later Italian composers, such as Berio and Nono, have experimented with modernism. The first German opera was "Dafne", composed by Heinrich Schütz in 1627, but the music score has not survived. Italian opera held a great sway over German-speaking countries until the late 18th century. Nevertheless, native forms would develop in spite of this
Bellissima Opera La Boheme" and "The Merry Widow", the Beverly Arts Center, Chicago, Illinois, Nov. 21, 2009. 2010: "A Night of Opera and Song," including songs of Tosti, Tchaikovsky, and Donizetti, as well as traditional Japanese dance and the world premiere of a song by composer Daniel Vines, Unity Temple, Oak Park, Illinois, Aug. 5, 2010. 2011: "La Traviata," Opera Up Close,The Center for Performing Arts, Governors State University, University Park, Illinois, Mar. 27, 2011. 2013: "Celebrate Earth Day" with Bellissima Opera, Munch Restaurant, Oak Park, Illinois, Apr. 22, 2013. 2014: "Music of the Universe," a multimedia concert in voice, violin, dance