opera seria

American  

[op-er-uh seer-ee-uh, op-ruh, aw-pe-rah se-ryah] / ˈɒp ər ə ˈsɪər i ə, ˈɒp rə, ˈɔ pɛ rɑ ˈsɛ ryɑ /

noun

plural

opera serias, operas seria,

plural

opere serie

1. Italian dramatic opera of the 18th century based typically on a classical subject and characterized by extensive use of the aria da capo and recitative.

---

opera seria British  

/ ˈopera ˈsɛːrja, ˈsɪərɪə /

noun

1. a type of opera current in 18th-century Italy based on a serious plot, esp a mythological tale

---

Etymology

Origin of opera seria

1875–80; < Italian: literally, serious opera

Example Sentences

Night two for me was Mozart’s 1781 opera seria “Idomeneo,” set on the island of Crete in the aftermath of the Trojan War.

From Washington Post • Oct. 13, 2022

For Currentzis, the work’s female characters reflect different styles of female singer: Donna Anna, for example, seems to have arrived from an opera seria and Zerlina, a peasant girl, from an opera buffa.

From New York Times • Jul. 22, 2021

Mozart had long since tossed out the archaic opera seria format.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 14, 2017

Mozart's opera may be ignored because it was an opera seria, the already archaic formal style of tragic opera.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 24, 2015

There must be as little learning and seriousness in an opera buffa as there must be much of these elements in an opera seria; but all the more of playfulness and merriment.

From Mozart: the man and the artist, as revealed in his own words by Kerst, Friedrich