Benjamin Britten not his own in which Britten was a somewhat dazzled accomplice". The American public liked it, but the critics did not, and it fell into neglect until interest revived near the end of the composer's life. Britten's subsequent operas range from large-scale works written for full-strength opera companies, to chamber operas for performance by small touring opera ensembles or in churches and schools. In the large-scale category are "Peter Grimes" (1945), "Billy Budd" (1951), "Gloriana" (1953), "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (1960) and "Death in Venice" (1973). Of the remaining operas, "The Rape of Lucretia" (1946), "Albert Herring" (1947), "The Little
Billy Budd (opera) at the 1949 Venice International Festival. This disturbed Britten, but Ghedini's opera gained little notice. Britten originally intended the title role for Geraint Evans, who prepared it but then withdrew because it lay too high for his voice. Britten chose Theodor Uppman to replace him, and Evans sang a different role, that of Mr Flint. When Britten conducted the opera's premiere, in its original form of four acts, it received 17 curtain calls. Uppman was acclaimed as a new star. "Billy Budd" received its United States première in 1952 in performances by Indiana University Opera Company. In 1960 Britten revised