Lucia Elizabeth Vestris she showed off her fabulously perfect legs, launched her career as a scandalous beauty. From then on she remained an extraordinary favourite in opera, musical farces, and comedies until her retirement in 1854. At the King's Theatre she sang in the English premieres of many Rossini operas, sometimes conducted by the composer himself: "La gazza ladra" (as Pippo, 1821), "La donna del lago" (as Malcolm Groeme, 1823), "Ricciardo e Zoraide" (as Zomira, 1823), "Matilde di Shabran" (as Edoardo, 1823), "Zelmira" (as Emma, 1824), and "Semiramide" (as Arsace, 1824). She excelled in "breeches parts," and she also performed in Mozart operas,
La scala di seta La scala di seta La scala di seta (The Silken Ladder or Die seidene Leiter) is an operatic "farsa comica" in one act by Gioachino Rossini to a libretto by Giuseppe Maria Foppa. It was first performed in Venice, Italy, at the Teatro San Moisè on 9 May 1812. The overture has been frequently recorded and continues to be featured in the modern concert repertoire. From 1810 to 1813, the young Rossini composed four Italian "farse", beginning with "La cambiale di matrimonio" ("The Bill of Marriage"), his first opera, and ending with "Il Signor Bruschino". These types of short pieces