Many of the defining features of the earlier Venetian public operas were already present in Roman opera, principal among them spectacular scenic effects and strong story lines that also admitted sub-plots. In place of dramas centred solely around mythological characters, librettists increasingly turned to historical times and events such as those depicted in Poppea, set in Nero’s Rome, or Homer’s account of Ulysses’ homecoming to Ithaca after the Trojan Wars. Manipulative gods still appear, but the human interest is much expanded. Also already present in Roman opera were the lowborn characters—servants, nurses, soldiers—who provided humorous relief, often in separate scenes, but as we will see, in later Venetian opera increasingly interactive with the principal characters. Such scenes frequently included local allusions (significantly, many operas have scenes that take place at sea) or popular Venetian songs. Given, too, that the principal period for opera performance was during Carnival (from 26 December to Shrove Tuesday) it is hardly surprising to find that many of these scenes revolve around characters in disguise or in drag. After all, was not the disguise of masking the essence of Carnival?