Based on the 1832 play LE ROI S'AMUSE by Victor Hugo, Guiseppe Verdi’s (1812-1901) RIGOLETTO was the composer’s sixteenth entry into the genre and is widely considered one of the first operatic masterpieces of his career. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had control over northern Italian theaters at the time, the tragic tale of the licentious Duke of Mantua, his hunch-backed jester Rigoletto, and Rigoletto's beloved daughter Gilda was triumphantly premiered on March 11, 1851 to a sold-out La Fenice Opera House under the direction of Gaetano Mares. The work proved so popular that the aria “La donna è mobile” was sung in the streets the morning after its debut. Rigoletto has remained as popular with audiences today as it was at its debut. While initially critics condemned the work for its tragically dark plot partnered with what they claimed was “popular” but insubstantial music, the opera has since gained overwhelming positive reception. Igor Stranvinsky even remarked, “… there is more substance and feeling [in the aria “La donna è mobile”] than in the whole of Wagner’s Ring Cycle.”