La serva padrona
At first, comic operas were generally presented as intermezzi between acts of more serious works. Neapolitan and then Italian comic opera grew into an independent form and became the most popular form of staged entertainment in Italy from about 1750 to 1800. In 1749, thirteen years after Pergolesi's death, his "La serva padrona" swept Italy and France, evoking the praise of such French Enlightenment figures as Rousseau.