There have been many great operas composed throughout recent history. In many of these operas there is a plot or theme that has been taken from an ancient myth, legend, or story. Most of the composers in history maintain the same approach when dealing with the connection of opera and historical tales.
One composer who follows this concept is Richard Wagner. The opera that he composed was Der Fliegende Hollander. Wagner was also the librettist in this opera. The composer chose to create this opera as a result of his journey across the New Sea. Hs experiences inspired him to develop the opera based on the legend of the Phantom Ship. This legend is about a sea captain who swore he would sail around the Cape of Good Hope, even if it took him forever. As a result Satan dooms his soul to the sea for eternity, unless he finds a woman to break the curse.
Another opera based on a legend is Der Freischutz by Carl Maria von Webber. The librettist of this work is a man named Friedrich Kind. The title of this play when translated into English means "The Free Shooter". This translation is as accurate as they could make it. This work is based on a German legend. The legend explains that a marksman, who uses charmed bullets, could secure these bullets by agreeing to hand his soul to the devil on a planned date. If the marksman could find another victim by the set day then he would be exempted. .
Henry Purell was an English composer who contributed the opera Dido and Aenas. The librettist of this work was Nahum Tate. The plot of this opera was based on the episodes in the Aeneid of Vergil. This tale involves a man and woman who fall in love with one another. Then one day the man is falsely told that the gods had asked him to sail to Italy, and so he went. When the women learned of this she took her life, she stabbed herself on a funeral pyre.
There is no question that there is a relationship between opera and historical legends or myth.