"The other." Is there a more terrifying moment in a couple's relationship than when the exclusive togetherness turns out to be an illusion? If one of the partners realizes that there is a third party involved? For Zazà, however, this realization will only be the first blow. Everything seemed so perfect. She absolutely wanted this Milio, who behaved so coolly towards her, the adored variety singer. But she was able to win his heart. And whose love now awakens in her a longing for a life that always seemed far away to her – who has worked her way up from financial and family turmoil to the top of the dazzling world of vaudeville: settling down. Marriage. Children. But now there is a suspicion that Milio could have a lover in Paris. Agitated, Zazà follows him, to get to the bottom of the truth. What she finds not only destroys her hopes but also her self-image. Milio is married and has one daughter. She, Zazà, is in this case "the other" who threatens to steal a husband and father. Deeply hurt, Zazà meets the unsuspecting adulterer again to confront him with her discovery and to make a self-determined decision.
Zazà, which premiered on November 10, 1900, stands, like Ruggero Leoncavallo's best-known opera Pagliacci (The Bajazzo) , in the tradition of verismo - the trend that wanted to revitalize Italian opera with contemporary, realistic themes. In Zazà, the flair of French variety shows, which Leoncavallo was familiar with from a four-year stay in Paris, meets socially critical milieu descriptions, passionate emotion - and an emancipated title character who leaves the often clichéd portrayal of loving women in the opera far behind.
