Giuseppe Verdi's I Vespri Siciliani takes that old stereotype and does it one better: At the end of this one, just about everyone has kicked the operatic bucket! By the mid-1850's, Verdi was on a creative hot streak that few composers have ever matched. He had just finished three operas that are still among the most popular ever written: Rigoletto, Il Trovatore and La Traviata. He was one of the most famous musicians in Europe, and he was a long way from finished.
