Das Pfauenfest is a singspiel

Singspiel

A Singspiel is a form of German-language music drama, now regarded as a genre of opera...

 in two acts by composer Johann Rudolf Zumsteeg. The opera

Opera

Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...

 has a German

German language

German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....

 libretto

Libretto

A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...

 by F. A. C. Werthes and premiered at the Hoftheater in Stuttgart

Stuttgart

Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....

 on 24 February 1801.

Synopsis

The fairy Morgana wickedly conspires against Lenore; spreading malicous lies about her. As a result, Lenore loses the love of Karados, a knight, and is banished from King Arthur's court. The King encourages a romantic attachment between Karados and his niece. The two are scheduled to betrothe at the Feast of the Peacock, and King Arthur orders that Lenore be brought back to court to witness the event. Meanwhile, Lenore is ministered to by a guardian spirit who weaves her a beautiful new gown. Lenore arrives at the court along with the guardian spirit who is in the guise of a minstrel. The guardian spirit has brought the gown he weaved to the court proclaiming to the men that it will only fit a woman of great virtue and the women that it will only fit the most beautiful woman. He has also brought a drinking-horn which only a true knight can empty. To the chagrin of the knights, Queen Ginevra proclaims that she will try on the gown first. When she approaches the gown, it flies away from her. All the other ladies of the court attempt to try on the gown with the same result. When Lenore reaches for the gown it stays still and fits her perfectly. Similarly, none of the knights can empty the drinking-horn except for Karados. Seeing that Karados and Lenore have been honored in this way, the King accepts Lenore back into the court and they are betrothed.

Sources

• Amadeus Almanac, accessed 16 October 2009
• Thomas Bauman. The New Grove Dictionary of Opera
  New Grove Dictionary of Opera
  The New Grove Dictionary of Opera is an encyclopedia of opera, considered to be one of the best general reference sources on the subject. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volumes....
  
  , edited by Stanley Sadie (1992), ISBN 0-333-73432-7 and ISBN 1-56159-228-5