libretto

Imagine a grand opera unfolding on stage - soaring voices, dramatic costumes, elaborate sets. But what are those singers actually saying? That is where this text comes in. It is the story, dialogue, and lyrics for an opera, operetta, or other long musical work. You can think of it as the script, but written to be sung instead of simply spoken.

While a playwright writes plays, a librettist writes this kind of text. Famous operas like The Marriage of Figaro have their own full versions. You would not usually read one from cover to cover like a novel - it is more often used by singers learning their parts and by listeners who want to follow the story closely.

The word "libretto" comes from Italian and means "little book." Traditionally, it is the text of a long musical work that is sung, especially an opera. It includes the words of the characters and often the basic flow of the story. The term is used most often for opera, but it can also apply to operettas, oratorios, cantatas, and sometimes musical theatre.

Unlike a play script, which is mainly meant for spoken dialogue, a libretto is written to be set to music. The librettist and the composer often work together so the words fit the music and the drama. It is not just about telling a story. The language also has to sound right when sung, with lines that match the rhythm and feeling of the music.

Sometimes the composer writes it too, as Richard Wagner did, but often another writer prepares it. This text gives the whole work its verbal shape by laying out scenes, characters, and sung dialogue.

You might see the term in discussions of opera, vocal music, or performance. Singers use it to learn their parts, and readers use it to follow what is happening in a work that may be sung in another language. So when an opera moves forward through music and voice, this is the text that carries the story underneath it.