La Bohème is an opera in four pictures composed by Giacomo Puccini. The libretto - based on the novell "Les scènes de la vie de bohème" - was written by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. The first performance took place in the Taetro Regio in Turin in 1896. Although it received bad reviews it became a worldwide sucess. It is part of the standard repertory of many opera houses and one of the most performed operas in the world. La Bohème is clos to the genre of Verismo. It's about life, suffering and love of common people. It's the fourth of Puccini's twelve operas and it is regarded as his masterpiece.