Ballad opera is defined as a British stage production from 1728 to 1760 that combines a comic or sentimental play with musical numbers. It was the first successful genre where both women and men were allowed to act on stage. The audiences for ballad operas were typically middle- and upper-class adults, as children would be at home with a babysitter. The most famous and successful early ballad opera was The Beggar's Opera from 1728.