A specific model of opera libretto without music in Dubrovnik during the 17th and 18th
centuryNowhere in Europe the Italian opera libretto has had such a direct and decisive
influence on original national drama production as it did in Dubrovnik during the 17th and 18th
century. In the Golden Age of Croatian Literature a hybrid drama genre was created. For more
than a century authors of this genre looked attentively at the most important trends of
Italian opera production and followed them faithfully. In Croatian literature of the 17th and
18th century a specific model of libretti without music was created one that appropriated the
Italian libretto. These plays were not performed along with functional music although
sometimes authors and actors would provide instrumental accompaniment to the texts. Nothing
more needs to be said for the dissemination and specific reception of Italian opera librettos
in Dubrovnik during the 17th and 18th century to be understood as occupying a noteworthy place
in the cultural life of Europe.
