August 26 — On This Day in Opera

Georg Christoph Wagenseil's opera "Ariodante", with a libretto by Antonio Salvi, received its first performance at the Burgtheater in Vienna.

Daniel Auber's opera "Le séjour militaire", with a libretto by Jean-Nicolas Bouilly, received its first performance at the Opéra-Comique in Paris.

Albert Lortzing's first stage work, "Ali Pascha von Janina", received its first performance at the Stadttheater in Münster, marking the beginning of the composer's career in musical theatre.

Daniel Auber's opéra comique "La fiancée", with a libretto by Eugène Scribe, received its first performance at the Opéra-Comique in Paris.

World premiere of Rutland Boughton’s opera "The Immortal Hour" at the Glastonbury Festival.

French composer and conductor François Benoist was born in Nantes. He later composed several operas and served for decades as organist of the Chapelle Royale and professor at the Paris Conservatoire.

German composer and conductor August Conradi died in Berlin. A prolific nineteenth-century theatre composer, he wrote numerous operas, operettas, farces, and incidental scores.

American soprano and actress Florence Easton was born in South Bank, Yorkshire. She later became a leading Metropolitan Opera soprano and created Lauretta in the world premiere of Puccini's "Gianni Schicchi".

Birth of Dutch soprano Gré Brouwenstijn, renowned especially for her portrayal of Leonore in Beethoven’s "Fidelio" and her international operatic career.

German composer Richard Strauss, creator of "Salome", "Elektra", "Der Rosenkavalier", "Ariadne auf Naxos", and "Die Frau ohne Schatten", died in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

Death of German-American dramatic soprano Lotte Lehmann, acclaimed for her interpretations of Wagner and Strauss and her influential post-stage teaching career.