Respighi interrupted work on his opera "Belfagor" to write this three-act puppet opera for children. His pupil Vincenzo di Donato orchestrated it for a very small ensemble. The production was wildly popular. For a 1934 production, Respighi enlarged the performing forces, doing the orchestration himself. This was fortunate, as the original manuscript later became lost. The new version became popular in concert performances, after its initial performance as a mimed work with singers, again, in the pit. It was never given as a regular opera with singing actors. The orchestration is for seven winds, strings, percussion, piano, celesta, and spinet or harpsichord. The libretto is by Gian Bistolfi, from the classic fairy tale "Sleeping Beauty" by Perrault. The story is rather faithfully used, while the music is playfully parodistic, alluding to any number of other composers. The main twist is that Sleeping Beauty falls into her magic slumber in 1640 and is awakened in 1940, as the music now has fox trots, tangos, and other modern dances. A very delightful piece.

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