burletta

[ ber-let-uh ]

/ bərˈlɛt ə /

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noun Theater.

(in the 18th and 19th centuries) a musical drama containing rhymed lyrics and resembling comic opera or a comic play containing songs.

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Origin of burletta

1740–50; <Italian, equivalent to burl(a) jest (see burlesque) + -etta-ette

It may be regarded as a species of prototype of the burletta or ballad opera of later days.
A Book of Burlesque|Willam Davenport Adams
Every body liked the Burletta, but none were pleased with the music—which has induced me to reset it.
Dr. Arne and Rule, Britannia|William Hayman Cummings
But the form given to the work is that of the old-fashioned burletta.
A Book of Burlesque|Willam Davenport Adams
We move ourselves—they are moved by wires; but we do just the same things—we are life and we are art, in the burletta we are both.
The Little Schoolmaster Mark|J. H. Shorthouse

Mr. Pierce Egan says:—Mr. Barrymores Burletta was thought of, written, and got up, in five days.
The True History of Tom and Jerry|Charles Hindley