La traviata can be roughly translated as "the woman who slipped off the straight and narrow". This refers to the title heroine Violetta Valéry, a coveted courtesan in Paris who allows herself to be serviced by rich men. She falls in love with young Alfredo Germont and ventures with him to escape the world of paid love. But their happiness is short-lived. Alfredo's father puts her under moral pressure and forces her to break up with his son. In desperation, she returns to her former life in the demi-monde.

Despite an unsuccessful world premiere in Venice in 1853, La traviata quickly grew into a huge success and remains to this day among Verdi's most loved operas worldwide. Here, as in many of his works, Verdi deals with his great theme: love overturned by social conventions.