 His writing career stretched back to 1579, when he had written verses for the Florentine court entertainment "Maschere d'Amazzoni".He had become widely known through his verse contributions to the celebrated intermedi for Girolamo Bargagli's play "La Pellegrina" ("The Pilgrim Woman"), performed in May 1589 at the wedding of Ferdinando I de' Medici and Christina of Lorraine.According to Gagliano, Rinuccini was a primary influence in the emergence of opera as a genre; he adapted the conventions of his contemporary lyric poets to produce the librettos for two of the earliest operas, "Dafne" and "Euridice"—the latter set to music by both Peri and Giulio Caccini.