 The name Giacomo Meyerbeer first became known internationally with his opera Il crociato in Egitto — premiered in Venice in 1824 and produced in London and Paris in 1825 ; incidentally , it was the last opera ever written to feature a castrato , and the last to require keyboard accompaniment for recitatives . This ' breakthrough ' in Paris was exactly what Meyerbeer had been aiming for over the past ten years ; he had been carefully preparing for it , developing contacts , and fully reaped his reward . 
