How did later productions make La traviata successful?

Although the premiere of La traviata was a failure, the opera achieved success within two months due to a revival that opened on May 6, 1853, at the Teatro San Benedetto in Venice.1

This turnaround was primarily driven by two factors:

• More suitable casting: The initial production suffered because the lead soprano, Fanny Salvini-Donatelli, was considered physically and vocally ill-suited for the role of the young, consumptive courtesan Violetta. The revival featured a more appropriate cast that could credibly portray the character.12
• Musical revisions: Giuseppe Verdi implemented a few small revisions to the score, which helped refine the work.12

These adjustments allowed the opera's inherent strengths—its intimate, bourgeois drama and beautiful melodies—to resonate with audiences, eventually establishing it as one of the most frequently performed operas in history.1