Verismo (music) of the poor, that had not generally been seen as a fit subject for literature. A short story by Verga called "Cavalleria rusticana" (), then developed into a play by the same author, became the source for what is usually considered to be the first "verismo" opera: "Cavalleria rusticana" by Mascagni, which premiered on 17 May 1890 at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome. Thus begun, the operatic genre of "verismo" produced a handful of notable works such as "Pagliacci", which premiered at Teatro Dal Verme in Milan on 21 May 1892, and Puccini's "Tosca" (premiering at the Teatro Costanzi in
Pagliacci (1982 film) Although they were filmed together, the "Pagliacci" recording was originally released separately from the soundtrack for "Cavalleria rusticana". Pagliacci (1982 film) Pagliacci is a 1982 Italian film of Ruggero Leoncavallo's opera "Pagliacci", directed by Franco Zeffirelli. All the actors, including Plácido Domingo and Teresa Stratas in the starring roles, were opera singers who sang their own parts. "Pagliacci" was shot at Milan's La Scala opera house and on a movie sound stage. Georges Prêtre conducted the Orchestra and Choir of La Scala. The film was screened out of competition at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival. It was also shown on