 With his next opera Meyerbeer became virtually a superstar . Robert le diable ( with libretto by Eugène Scribe and Germain <unk> ) , produced in Paris in 1831 , was one of the earliest grand operas . The libretto , originally planned in 1827 as a three @-@ act opéra comique for the Opéra @-@ <unk> theatre , was <unk> after 1829 in a five @-@ act form to meet the requirements of the Paris Opéra . Its revised characterisation as a ' grand opera ' placed it in succession to Auber 's La <unk> de <unk> ( 1828 ) and Rossini 's Guillaume Tell ( 1829 ) in this new genre . The composer undertook further work on the opera in early 1831 adding ballet episodes , including the " Ballet of Nuns " , which was to prove one of the opera 's great sensations , becoming an early example of the ballet blanc genre . He also rewrote the two major male roles of Bertrand and Robert to suit the talents of Nicolas <unk> and Adolphe Nourrit , respectively . At the invitation of Nourrit , <unk> Falcon made her debut at the age of 18 at the Opéra in the role of Alice on 20 July 1832 , and she made a vivid impression on the public , which included on that night Auber , Berlioz , Halévy , Maria <unk> , <unk> <unk> , <unk> <unk> , Alexandre Dumas and Victor Hugo . On hearing her in the role , Meyerbeer himself declared his opera at last ' complete ' . 
