La Favorite which premiered at the Paris Opera on 2 December 1840 has a complicated history. Although Donizetti had already had one opera performed in this theatre - Les Martyrs a reworking of Poliuto - in La Favorite he aimed to create a work tha t was truly French set to a French Libretto & with music written to suit French tastes. The fact that La Favorite remained i n the repertoire of the Opera until 1918 provides a measure of his success.