Whats the difference between an opera and a musical?
The key difference is, in a typical musical dialogue is spoken by the characters who occasionally burst into song. In most operas, the singing never stops. Even instructions as mundane as, Open the door, are sung rather than spoken. A solo in an opera is known as an aria. When two people sing together, its called a duet, and more than two singers form a trio, quartet, quintet, or ensemble. The themes of opera tend to be more sweeping or grand than the plot of the typical musical and the human drama, decidedly more passionate and intense.
