THEATRE ROYAL, DRURY-LANE. THIS PRESENT THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 1808. . . THE NEW OPERA IN 4 ACTS OF KAIS; OR, LOVE IN THE DESERTS. . .

[London]: Lowndes, Printer, [1808]. Broadside, approximately 11 1/2 x 8 1/2 inches, untrimmed. Portion of bottom line of text unprinted. Small remnants of paper tape on verso, else fine.

Broadside advertising the twelfth performance of the opera, KAIS, OR, LOVE IN THE DESERTS, at Drury Lane, starring and produced by the renowned English tenor, John Braham. John Braham (ca. 1774-1856) rose from poverty and orphanhood in London to the heights of European opera, where he celebrated as one of the great voices of his age. As a British Jew, he also represented a major shift in Jewish status and social potential in the late Georgian era, becoming not only an artist of acclaim but also eventually the father-in-law of several English aristocrats.

KAIS was based on the ancient Arabian love story of Layla and Majnun, which had been adapted into a famous work by Persian Poet Nizami Ganjavi in the 12th century, which in turn became the source for numerous later poets and mystics throughout the Middle East and Central and South Asia. The story gained great popularity in Europe after Isaac DIsraeli published an English translation in the early 19th century. It was upon this translation that Isaac Brandon based the libretto for KAIS. Braham and William Reeve composed the music for the opera, which opened in 1807.