There are few art forms as visceral and emotional as opera—and few that are as daunting for newcomers. In this highly accessible guide, New York Times critic Vivien Schweitzer offers a spirited tour of the original multimedia event, from Monteverdi's 1607 L'Orfeo—generally considered the first successful opera—through beloved classics like Carmen and La bohème, and up through recent decades with Nixon in China and Brokeback Mountain. With enthusiasm, frankness, and humor, Schweitzer introduces the genre's most important composers and some of its most influential performers, recounts its long-standing debates, and explains its essential terminology in layman's terms.