grand opera is a term which is used to describe an opera with continuous music. it is a kind of opera that was popular in the 19th-century. grand operas are usually divided into four or five acts. there have large casts (many singers taking part) and large orchestras. there is a lot of scenery. the story is dramatic. it is usually a story about a hero from history. the term "grand opera" has often been used to describe the paris opéra from the late 1820s to around 1850, and sometimes to describe the paris opéra itself.