The Bartered Bride is a comic opera in three acts by the Czech composer Bedřich Smetana, first performed at the Provisional Theatre, Prague, on 30 May 1866. Set in a country village with realistic characters, it tells the story of how true love prevails over the combined efforts of ambitious parents and a scheming marriage broker. Originally presented in a two-act format with spoken dialogue, the opera was not immediately successful, but it gained rapid popularity after numerous revisions. Smetana's musical treatment made considerable use of traditional Bohemian dance forms such as the polka and furiant, creating music which was accurately folk-like, and considered to be quintessentially Czech in spirit. After a performance in Vienna in 1892 the opera achieved international recognition. It reached Chicago in 1893, London in 1895 and New York in 1909, becoming the first, and for many years the only, Czech opera in the general repertory. Many of these early international performances were in German, under the title Die verkaufte Braut, and the German-language version continues to be played and recorded.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bartered_Bride

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1536:

Jane Seymour, a former lady-in-waiting, became Queen of England by marrying King Henry VIII. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Seymour

1854:

The Kansas–Nebraska Act became law, establishing the US territories of Nebraska and Kansas, repealing the 1820 Missouri Compromise, and allowing settlers in those territories to determine if they would permit slavery within their boundaries. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kansas%E2%80%93Nebraska_Act

1913:

The Treaty of London was signed to deal with territorial adjustments arising out of the conclusion of the First Balkan War, declaring, among other things, an independent Albania. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_London_(1913)

1963:

Buddhist crisis: A protest against pro-Catholic discrimination was held outside South Vietnam's National Assembly, the first open demonstration against President Ngô Đình Diệm. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_crisis

1998:

A 6.9 Mw earthquake struck northern Afghanistan, killing at least 4,000 people, destroying more than 30 villages, and leaving 45,000 people homeless in the Afghan provinces of Takhar and Badakhshan. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_1998_Afghanistan_earthquake

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

isinglass: 1. A form of gelatine obtained from the air bladder of the sturgeon and certain other fish, used as an adhesive and as a clarifying agent for wine and beer. 2. A thin, transparent sheet of mica (probably from its similarity to true isinglass). https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/isinglass

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

The liberty of every individual is only the reflection of his own humanity, or his human right through the conscience of all free men, his brothers and his equals. I can feel free only in the presence of and in relationship with other men. In the presence of an inferior species of animal I am neither free nor a man, because this animal is incapable of conceiving and consequently recognizing my humanity. I am not myself free or human until or unless I recognize the freedom and humanity of all my fellowmen.
 Only in respecting their human character do I respect my own.   --Mikhail Bakunin https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Mikhail_Bakunin