Pagliacci Italian premiere, and it was given in New York on 15 June 1893, with Agostino Montegriffo as Canio. Around 1890, when Pietro Mascagni's "Cavalleria rusticana" premiered, Leoncavallo was a little-known composer. After seeing Mascagni's success, he decided to write an opera in response: one act composed in the verismo style. Leoncavallo wrote that he based the story of "Pagliacci" on an incident from his childhood: a murder in 1865, the victim of which was a Leoncavallo family servant, Gaetano Scavello. The murderer was Gaetano D'Alessandro, with his brother Luigi an accomplice to the crime. The incident resulted from a series
Chelsea Opera and received critical acclaim from "Opera News": the operas "had great appeal both to old opera hands and to first-time operagoers." Each season now includes multiple offerings within its concert series, "Chelsea Opera presents…", a series of thematic concerts featuring the company’s principal singers and guest artists, whose number now exceeds 400 who have performed principal roles, sung in the ensemble, been involved in design/production, and played in the Chelsea Opera Chamber Orchestra (“COCO”). Chelsea Opera’s performances to date have included "Suor Angelica", "Amahl and the Night Visitors" (also given an encore presentation in November 2009), "Cavalleria Rusticana", "Pagliacci", "Don