The Scarlet Letter (Damrosch opera)

The Scarlet Letter is an opera by Walter Damrosch, based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's 1850 novel of the same name. The libretto was by George Parsons Lathrop, the son-in-law of Hawthorne. The work is Wagnerian in style, Damrosch being a great enthusiast and champion of the composer.

Excerpts from the opera first premiered at Carnegie Hall on January 4 and 5, 1895; the first fully staged performance was by the composer's own Damrosch Opera Company February 10, 1896, at The Boston Theatre in Boston, Massachusetts. Among those present at the premiere were Charles Eliot Norton, Prince Serge Wolkonsky, Julia Ward Howe, and Nellie Melba. The opera was performed later that year at the Metropolitan Opera House at 39th Street in New York–but was not performed by the company of the Metropolitan Opera.