Ero s onoga svijeta (), usually translated as Ero the Joker, is a Croatian comic opera in three acts by Jakov Gotovac, with a libretto by Milan Begović based on a folk tale. The genesis of the opera was at Vrlička Česma in the town of Vrlika, a hometown of Milan Begović.
According to Croatian musicologist Josip Andreis, Ero s onoga svijeta is "not only the most successful Croatian comic opera to this day, but also the only Croatian opera with a presence in the theaters abroad". American musicologist and music critic Ralph P. Locke described it as one of two major Croatian operas, alongside Nikola Šubić Zrinski.
Characters
- Marko, rich peasant, bass
- Doma, his second wife, mezzo-soprano
- Đula (Djula), Marko's daughter from the first marriage, soprano
- Mića (Ero), young man from the nearby village, tenor
- Sima, millman, baritone
- Shepherd boy, child soprano
- A young man, tenor
- girls (6 solos), women (8 solos), men, shepherds, fruit-merchants (4 solos), merchants (4 solos), children and other village people.
The opera takes place in a small town, somewhere in the plain at the foothill of Dinara mountain in Herzegovina, in early autumn.
Orchestra
- 3 Flauti (III muta in Piccolo), 2 Oboi, Corno Inglese, 3 Clarinetti, 2 Fagotti (II muta in Contrafagotto)
- 4 Corni in F, 3 Trombe in C, 3 Tromboni, Tuba
- Timpani, Percussioni, Arpa, Pianino
- I Violini, II Violini, Viole, Violoncelli, Contrabassi
- Sul palco: Organo
History
thumb|The National Opera of Bulgaria in Sofia after the premiere of Ero s onoga svijeta with composer Jakov Gotovac, April 1940
Composition of the opera began on October 10, 1932, and progressed in three stages, being finished on May 8, 1935. The first performance was on November 2, 1935, at the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb, and the opera has since become the most performed work of South Slavic music literature.