Teatro dell'Opera in Rome

Rising near the baths of Diocletian, where Imperial Rome once proclaimed its power, the Teatro dell'Opera in Rome stands as a different but no less enduring monument to Italian genius. Inaugurated in 1880 as the Teatro Costanzi, it was born at a pivotal hour - when a newly unified Italy sought not only political coherence but a shared cultural soul. Within its crimson and golden interiors, that soul found one of its most resounding expressions. Here Puccini's Tosca premiered in 1900, at a time when the theatre became both witness and protagonist of modernity - surviving war, regime, and reinvention - while safeguarding a repertoire that binds Italy to the wider world. To enter its auditorium is to step into a continuum: ancient stone outside, velvet and light within, and above all the breath of singers transforming silence into shared memory. This is a stunning volume, enriched by glorious photography, that honours and uplifts one of the most important opera houses in the world.

Text in English and Italian. 

Piero Mioli is the Counsellor of the Accademia Filarmonica and President of the Cappella dei Servi, and writes for the newspaper Resto del Carlino. He has written essays and books on Padre Martini, Rossini, Gluck, Donizetti, Verdi, and on the Opera. Among his latest books, in addition to the reissue of the Dizionario di musica classica in two volumes (BUR), Il melodramma romantico (Mursia) and L’opera italiana del Novecento (Manzoni). Francesco Giambrone Superintendent of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma Foundation. A distinguished cultural manager who has led some of Italy’s most prestigious musical institutions. Before becoming Superintendent of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma in 2022, he served as Superintendent of the Teatro Massimo di Palermo for two mandates (1996–2008 and 2014–2022) and of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (2007–2013). Eleonora Abbagnato Director of the Ballet Company and the School of Dance of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma. Abbagnato is one of the most celebrated figures in international ballet. In 2013, she made history as the first Italian dancer to be named Étoile of the Paris Opera Ballet, following a performance of Roland Petit’s Carmen. Since 2015, she has directed the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma Ballet. Michele Mariotti Musical Director of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma. Awarded the prestigious Abbiati Prize as “Best Conductor” in 2016, Mariotti has been the Musical Director of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma since 2022. Known for his deep interpretive insight into the works of Verdi and Rossini, he has conducted world-class orchestras such as the Leipzig Gewandhaus, and the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.