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Location Information:
The
Verona Arena (Arena di Verona) is a
Roman amphitheatre in Verona, Italy,
which is internationally famous for
the large-scale opera performances
given there. It is one of the best
preserved ancient structures of its
kind.
The building itself was built in AD
30 on a site which was then beyond
the city walls. The ludi (shows and
games) staged there were so famous
that spectators came from many other
places, often far away, to witness
them. The amphitheatre could host
more than 30,000 spectators in
ancient times.
The round façade of the building was
originally composed of white and
pink limestone from Valpolicella;
but after a major earthquake in
1117, which almost completely
destroyed the structure's outer
ring, except for the so-called
"ala", the stone was quarried for
re-use in other buildings.
The first interventions to recover
the arena's function as a theatre
began during the Renaissance. Some
operatic performances were later
mounted in the building during the
1850s, owing to its outstanding
acoustics.
In 1913, operatic performances in
the arena commenced in earnest due
to the zeal and initiative of the
great Italian opera tenor Giovanni
Zenatello and the impresario Ottone
Rovato. The first 20th-century
operatic production at the arena, a
staging of Giuseppe Verdi's Aida,
took place on 10 August of that
year, to mark the birth of Verdi a
100 years before in 1813. Musical
luminaries such as Puccini and
Mascagni were in attendance. Since
then, summer seasons of opera have
been mounted continually at the
arena, except in 1915-18 and
1940–45, when Europe was convulsed
in war.
Nowadays, four productions are
mounted each year between June and
August. During the winter months,
the local opera and ballet companies
perform at the L'Accademia
Filarmonica.
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