Dafne
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Dafne is the earliest known work that, by modern standards, could be considered an opera.
The story of Apollo falling in love with the eponymous nymph, Jacopo Peri wrote Dafne for an elite circle of humanists in Florence in about 1594. It was probably first performed in either 1597 or 1598.
An attempt to revive Greek mythology, Peri's work has been lost, despite its popularity and fame in Europe at the time of its publishing.
The text of Dafne was written by Ottavio Rinuccini.