Where did opera originate as a form of performance?

Opera originated in Florence, Italy. In the late 16th century, a group of Renaissance scholars and artists, including Giovanni Battista della Casa, Ottavio Rinuccini, and Jacopo Peri, attempted to revive the traditions of the ancient Greek theater, a form of drama that they believed combined music, poetry, dance, and the visual arts.

In 1597, the first work considered a modern opera, Dafne, was composed by Jacob Peri, but its score has not survived intact. Instead, the 1600 staging of Euridice, a collaboration between Peri and Rinuccini, is often considered the earliest surviving complete operatic work.

After its origins in Italy, opera spread rapidly to other European countries and developed into a global art form over the ensuing centuries, with each culture adapting and innovating the form and content of opera locally.