Long before Wagner coined the term, opera producers had dreamt of creating the complete work, the ultimate art, a Gesamtkunstwerk. In 1644 the diarist John Evelyn described an opera he saw in Rome in which Gian Lorenzo Bernini had “painted the scenes, cut the Statues, invented the engines, composed the Musique, writ the Comedy, and built the Theatre”. And throughout the 18th century flashy impresarios would enhance opera performances with grand, perspectival sets, sophisticated mechanical effects and menageries of birds and animals.
早在瓦格纳(Wagner)创造出“总体艺术(Gesamtkunstwerk)”这一术语之前，歌剧制作人就已经梦想着要创作出完整的作品、终极版的艺术——也就是“总体艺术”。1644年，日记作家约翰•伊夫林(John Evelyn)描述了他在罗马观看的一部歌剧：济安•洛伦佐•贝尼尼(Gian Lorenzo Bernini)为该歌剧“渲染了场景，制作了雕像，创作了配乐和剧本，并建成了剧场”。整个18世纪，浮华的演出者们使用宏大而透视的布景、精致的细节效果以及珍奇的鸟类和各色动物来加强歌剧演出的效果。