Editing Mezzo-soprano (section)

== History ==
While mezzo-sopranos typically sing secondary roles in operas, notable exceptions include the title role in [[Georges Bizet|Bizet]]'s ''[[Carmen]]'', Angelina ([[Cinderella]]) in [[Gioachino Rossini|Rossini]]'s ''[[La Cenerentola]]'', and Rosina in Rossini's ''[[The Barber of Seville|Barber of Seville]]'' (all of which are also sung by sopranos and contraltos). Many 19th-century [[French-language operas]] give the leading female role to mezzos, including ''[[Béatrice et Bénédict]]'', ''[[La damnation de Faust]]'', ''[[Don Quichotte]]'', ''[[La favorite]]'', ''[[Dom Sébastien]]'', ''[[Charles VI (opera)|Charles VI]]'', ''[[Mignon]]'', ''[[Samson et Dalila]]'', ''[[Les Troyens]]'', and ''[[Werther]]'', as well as ''Carmen''.

Typical roles for mezzo-sopranos include the stereotypical triad associated with contraltos of "witches, bitches, and britches": witches, nurses, and wise women, such as Azucena in [[Giuseppe Verdi|Verdi]]'s ''[[Il trovatore]]''; villains and seductresses such as Amneris in Verdi's ''[[Aida]]''; and "[[breeches role]]s" or "trouser roles" (male characters played by female singers) such as Cherubino in [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart's]] ''[[Le nozze di Figaro]]''. Mezzo-sopranos are well represented in [[baroque music]], [[early music]], and [[baroque opera]].<ref name=Appelman /> Some roles designated for lighter [[soubrette]] sopranos are sung by mezzo-sopranos, who often provide a fuller, more dramatic quality. Such roles include Despina in Mozart's ''[[Così fan tutte]]'' and Zerlina in his ''[[Don Giovanni]]''.<ref name=Caldwell>{{cite book
|title= Singer's Edition (Soubrette): Operatic Arias – Soubrette
|last1= Boldrey
|first1= Richard
|author2=Robert Caldwell|author3=Werner Singer|author4=Joan Wall|author5=Roger Pines
|year= 1992
|publisher= Caldwell Publishing
|isbn= 978-1-877761-03-4}}</ref> Mezzos sometimes play [[dramatic soprano]] roles such as Santuzza in [[Pietro Mascagni|Mascagni]]'s ''[[Cavalleria rusticana]]'', Lady Macbeth in Verdi's ''[[Macbeth (Verdi)|Macbeth]]'', and Kundry in Wagner's ''[[Parsifal]]''.<ref name=Boldrey>{{cite book
|title= Guide to Operatic Roles and Arias
|last= Boldrey
|first= Richard
|year= 1994
|publisher= Caldwell Publishing
|isbn= 978-1-877761-64-5}}</ref>