Editing Libretto (section)

==Language and translation==
[[File:Henry Purcell portrait by John Closterman.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Henry Purcell]] (1659–1695), whose operas were written to English libretti]]
As the originating language of opera, Italian dominated that genre in Europe (except in France) well through the 18th century, and even into the next century in Russia, for example, when the Italian opera troupe in [[Saint Petersburg]] was challenged by the emerging native Russian repertory. Significant exceptions before 1800 can be found in [[Henry Purcell|Purcell]]'s works, [[Handel]]'s first operas, [[ballad opera]] and [[Singspiel]] of the 18th century, etc.

Just as with literature and song, the libretto has its share of problems and challenges with [[translation]]. In the past (and even today), foreign musical stage works with spoken dialogue, especially comedies, were sometimes performed with the sung portions in the original language and the spoken dialogue in the vernacular. The effects of leaving lyrics untranslated depend on the piece. A man like Louis Durdilly<ref>Durdilly (8 November 1848 — 11 October 1929), founder of the Comptoir général de musique française et étrangère (1878) is remembered for the new translation of ''[[Don Giovanni]]'' ([[Opéra-Comique]], November 17, 1896, with [[Charles Gounod]]) ; a translation of ''[[The Magic Flute]]'', also with Gounod and revived at the Opéra Royal du Château de Versailles in January 2020 by [[Hervé Niquet]] (on Youtube) ; a new translation of Verdi's ''[[Rigoletto]]'' (Victor Hugo disapproved of Edouard Duprez's translation) ; he also translated from the German (Faust, [[Fidelio]], [[Der Freischütz]], [[Oberon (Weber)|Oberon]]…</ref> would translate the whole libretto, dialogues and airs, into French: [[Così fan tutte]] became '' Ainsi font toutes, ou la Fidélité des femmes'', and instead of Ferrando singing "Un' aura amorosa" French-speaking audiences were treated to Fernand singing "Ma belle est fidèle autant qu'elle est belle".<ref>Libretto in French: [https://numerique.banq.qc.ca/patrimoine/details/52327/2504364?docref=naOmZjccbcCLBest-ZBsaQ p. 107]</ref>

Many musicals, such as the old [[Betty Grable]] – [[Don Ameche]] – [[Carmen Miranda]] vehicles, are largely unaffected, but this practice is especially misleading in translations of musicals like ''[[Show Boat]]'', ''[[The Wizard of Oz (1902 musical)|The Wizard of Oz]]'', ''My Fair Lady'' or ''Carousel'', in which the lyrics to the songs and the spoken text are often or always closely integrated, and the lyrics serve to further the plot.{{Citation needed|date=March 2010}} Availability of printed or projected translations today makes singing in the original language more practical, although one cannot discount the desire to hear a sung drama in one's own language.

The Spanish words ''libretista'' (playwright, script writer or screenwriter) and ''libreto'' (script or screen play), which are used in the Hispanic TV and cinema industry, derived their meanings from the original operatic sense.