The Beggar's Opera

Japanese: 乞食オペラ - こじきおぺら（英語表記）The Beggar's Opera

A play by the English playwright J. Gay. First performed in 1728. The main character is Macheath, the lecherous chief of highwaymen. The play features beggars, thieves, prostitutes, prison officials, and fences, and the author satirizes the social conditions of the time, especially the political world ruled by Prime Minister R. Walpole, through the depiction of their lives. It is a musical drama that combines existing ballad music with newly written words and dialogue, and is considered to be the first "ballad opera" in England. In contrast to the Italian operas that were popular at the time, this was an attempt to establish a new genre by choosing popular music and themes and using the native language.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

イギリスの劇作家J.ゲイの劇。1728年初演。好色な追剝の首領マクヒースを主人公とし，乞食，泥棒，娼婦，監獄の役人，盗品故買業者などが登場するが，作者は彼らの生態の描写を通じて当時の世相，特に首相R.ウォルポールが君臨する政界を風刺している。既存のバラッドの曲に新たにつけた詞と台詞をまじえた音楽劇で，イギリス最初の〈バラッド･オペラ〉とされる。これは当時もてはやされていたイタリア･オペラに対して，庶民的な音楽と題材を選び，母国語を用いることによって，新たなジャンルを確立しようとしたものである。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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