The Merry Wives of Windsor is a comedy by William Shakespeare, first published in 1602, though believed to have been written prior to 1597. The Windsor of the play's title is a reference to Windsor Castle in Berkshire, England, and though nominally set in the reign of Henry IV, the play makes no pretence to exist outside contemporary Elizabethan era English middle class life. It features the character Sir John Falstaff, the fat knight who had previously been featured in Henry IV Parts 1 and 2. It has been adapted for the opera on several occasions.

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The Wayward Wife (Italian: La provinciale) is a 1953 Italian drama film directed by Mario Soldati. It was entered into the 1953 Cannes Film Festival. In 2008 the film was selected to enter the list of the 100 Italian films to be saved.

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The Merry Wives of Windsor (in German: Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor) is an opera in three acts by Otto Nicolai to a German libretto by Salomon Hermann Mosenthal based on the play The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare.

The opera is a Singspiel, containing much spoken dialogue between distinct musical numbers. The opera remains popular in Germany, and the overture is sometimes heard in concert in other countries.

Composition history

Otto Nicolai composed the music from 1845 to 1849. He had previously achieved great success with a few Italian operas, but this opera was to become his masterpiece in the German language. The composer himself made some changes to the libretto.

Performance history

It was difficult at first to find a stage that was willing to mount the opera, but following the premiere at the Konigliches Opernhaus (Royal Opera House, now Berlin State Opera) in Berlin on 9 March 1849 under the baton of the composer, it achieved great success and its popularity continues to this day. Though the libretto and the dramaturgy may seem old-fashioned to today's audiences, the music is of such high quality that the work is nevertheless performed with increasing regularity.

The Merry Wives of Windsor may refer to:

See also

The Merry Wives of Windsor (German: Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor) is a 1950 East German musical comedy film directed by Georg Wildhagen. It was based on William Shakespeare's play by the same name.

Plot

In Elizabethan England, Sir John Falstaff is embroiled in attempting to have a love affair with several women, which soon turns into a humorous adventure.

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Production

The film is an adaptation of the 1849 opera The Merry Wives of Windsor composed by Otto Nicolai with a libretto by Salomon Hermann Mosenthal which was based on William Shakespeare's play of the same title. It was made by the state-owned DEFA studio on a large budget.