Word of the Day: Opera

o-pe-ra / ˈäp(ə)rə noun

1. a dramatic composition featuring singers and instrumentalists, in which all dialogue is sung with accompaniment

No good opera plot can be sensible, for people do not sing when they are feeling sensible.

1. H. Auden, 1907-1973

 

2. the score of a musical drama

I seem to write an opera about every 20 years; if you live long enough you can write four operas. Virgil Thomson, 1896-1989  

3. the performance of a dramatic composition

Whenever I go to an opera, I leave my sense and reason at the door with my half-guinea, and deliver myself up to my eyes and my ears. Lord Chesterfield, 1694-1773  

4. a company or theater where dramatic compositions and other orchestral works are performed

I tell you, it is easier to build a grand opera or a city center than to build a personal house. Alvar Aalto, 1898-1976  

5. the form or branch of dramatic art represented by such compositions

Opera is the most complete art form. Karen DeCrow, 1937-2014