Well, Oriel...Where's the "continuity" between scenes or acts in operas or plays? I'm not sure that continuity in the sense of non-stop, non-gap performance (that, let's face it, could last for a good hour or two...) is the best thing for audiences or performers, and I have a feeling that composers/playwrights have that at the front of their minds...

Decades ago I went to a superb performance of the St Matthew Passion at the Royal Festival Hall. It takes about five hours to perform and we had a lunch break in the middle...