Dulcamara, or the Little Duck and the Great Quack Dulcamara, or the Little Duck and the Great Quack Dulcamara, or the Little Duck and the Great Quack, is one of the earliest plays written by W.S. Gilbert, his first solo stage success. The work is a musical burlesque of Donizetti's "L'Elisir d'Amore", and the music was arranged by Mr. Van Hamme. It opened at the St James's Theatre on 29 December 1866, the last item in a long evening, following a farce and Dion Boucicault's new play "Hunted Down". "Dulcamara" ran for a successful 120 nights. The popularity of the piece encouraged further commissions for opera burlesques from Gilbert,
Acis and Galatea (Handel) divine powers she can transform Acis's corpse into a beautiful fountain. The opera closes with Galatea's larghetto air, "Heart, the seat of soft delight", where she exerts her powers to enact the transformation, ending with the chorus celebrating Acis's immortalisation. Source: Recordings of "Acis and Galatea" on operadis-opera-discography.org.uk Acis and Galatea (Handel) Acis and Galatea (HWV 49) is a musical work by George Frideric Handel with an English text by John Gay. The work has been variously described as a serenata, a masque, a pastoral or pastoral opera, a "little opera" (in a letter by the composer while it was