My essay deals with the genres related to one of Szilárd Borbély’s lesser-known dramatic works and analyses the relationship of literature and theatre, literary origin and stage adaptation. In Ólomka és Papírlány, published in Új Forrás in 2004, Borbély re-imagines Andersen’s The Steadfast Tin Soldier and the story of the protagonist’s love in the form of a poetic libretto which balances on the border of fairy tale and paper opera. I deal with the paratexts, intertexts, and genre features of Borbély’s play so that the text can be interpreted from the perspective of the fairy tale, the opera, the libretto, and the lyrical work as well. My hypothesis is that Borbély’s piece is an integral part of contemporary Hungarian dramatic literature.