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Why did Naples censors object to Gaetano Donizettiās opera Poliuto?
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Gaetano Donizetti
Gaetano Donizetti, portrait by Giovanni Carnevali; in the Museo Donizettiano, Bergamo, Italy.
In 1838, municipal censors in Naples blocked the production of Gaetano Donizettiās opera Poliuto on the grounds that its subject matter was unsuitable for the stage. Specifically, the censors objected because the opera depicted a Christian martyr, deeming the sacred nature of the theme inappropriate for theatrical performance.1
Following this rejection, Donizetti moved to Paris, where he eventually produced the work in 1840 under the title Les Martyrs, featuring a French text by EugĆØne Scribe.1