One of the greatest operetta composers, Jacques Offenbach was usually less successful when stepping out of that genre. He wrote Robinson Crusoe as a romantic opera for the Paris Opera Comique, but it was long and sentimental and soon passed out of the repertory. The Comic Opera Guild recognized the value buried in the work and commissioned Thomas Petiet to revise it. Removing a third of the score and rewriting the libretto produced a charming operetta. The Grand Aria is sung by Robinson (David Troiano) as Act II begins. He is now marooned and is not happy about being the king of a desert island. For more comic operas and operettas, visit comicoperaguild.org.