La Scala Opera and Ballet Theatre, Milan, Italy: repertoire

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Opera originated in Italy and later developed there as a musical and dramatic art. Since the beginning of the seventeenth century, Venice or Naples were considered opera centers. After the La Scala theater was built by order of the Austrian Queen Maria Theresa, the palm in this kind of genre passed to Milan. And so it remains to this day. This "Temple of the Opera", as it is commonly referred to by the public, has its own choir, ballet company and unsurpassed orchestra, renowned for their amazing performances throughout the world.

The background of Milanese pride

The La Scala Theater was erected on the site where the Milanese church once stood, which later gave its name to the new building. The building was designed by the then famous architect Gioseppe Piermarini and built over two years in 1778.

All the magnificence of the building is hidden behind a strict and not very noticeable facade, which is made in neoclassical style. La Scala (Milan) was built very quickly, as its predecessor burned down, and the Italian aristocracy demanded a faster outcome of construction and longed for new performances. Therefore, the appearance of the theater was not givenincreased attention, but this did not affect the interior decoration of the auditorium with perfect acoustics, where all the rules of optics were observed when arranging seats.

In addition to the opera and ballet, the building contained many places where the local public could have fun. These were various gambling rooms and buffets, in which large gambling gatherings took place and brought great pleasure to the Milanese aristocracy. Thus, for the whole country, La Scala became a real center of social life. Milan became a destination for theatergoers and opera lovers from all over the world.

The building was repeatedly reconstructed, and during the Second World War it was completely wiped off the face of the earth and then restored to its original form by engineer and architect L. Secchi.

Artists and great people who performed within the walls of the theater

The greatest masters of that time created their works for La Scala. Italy has always been looking forward to what's new in the seasons, which at that time were divided into spring, summer, autumn and carnival time. The first three always delighted the audience with serious operas, and the fourth was devoted to ballet and various light theatrical productions.

In the nineteenth century, most of the theater's repertoire consisted of operas written by the famous bel canto master Gioacchino Antonio Rossini. It was thanks to him that the serious style of performing this genre came into fashion. Then Donizetti and Bellini surprised the audience with their works, and they were performed by well-known opera divas - Maria Malibran, Giuditta Pasta andmany more.

But the most significant event of that time was the arrival at La Scala (Milan) of the world-famous Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi. It is thanks to him that Italian opera has become so popular not only in Italy, but throughout Europe.

An equally significant turn of fate was the appearance in the theater of Arturo Toscanini, who already in his youth became famous thanks to the wonderful performance of the work "Aida". Before him, there was a conductor at La Scala who completely did not meet any necessary requirements, but Toscanini was able to conquer even picky theatergoers with his play. Subsequently, in addition to his main position, he also became an artistic director, which brought many positive changes to the life of the theater.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, on the stages of La Scala, Milan and its theatrical audience could see how the main opera divas of that century, such as Renata Tibaldi and Maria Callas, fought for the title of prima. Many world celebrities have performed here: Luciano Pavarotti, Enrico Caruso, Montserrat Caballe, Placiddo Domingo, as well as the best voices of Russia: Fedor Chaliapin, Leonid Sobinov and many others.

Repertoire of our days

The theater opens its doors to art lovers on December 7th, and the season ends in the middle of summer. Today, the opera "La Scala" can be both classical and modern. The works of composers of past and present times are heard from the stage. The best conductors, directors and artists from all over the world are invited to participate in them.

Once every two or three years, such famous performances and operas as "Aida", "Falstaff" and "Otello", created by Giuseppe Verdi, as well as "Madama Butterfly" by composer Giacomo Puccini, are staged on the stage of the theater and the work of Vincenzo Belinni "Norma" known to many theatergoers. They are presented to the public both in classical style and in modern processing - thanks to the unsurpassed technical parameters of the theater, enabling the director to embody any whim that he wants to use in a theatrical production. Therefore, here the repertoire always pleases its audience.

Besides these great classics, here you can find operas for every taste. For example, world-class composers such as Richard Wagner, Gioacchino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Modest Mussorgsky and Charles Francois Gounod.

Between opera and theater performances during the season, the audience is delighted with concerts of various world stars and performances of their own choir, accompanied by an orchestra.

What is the role of ballet?

From the very first days of the foundation of the theater, ballet art has occupied a significant place in the repertoire of La Scala. On the opening day, Milan and its audience saw a delightful production of "Prisoners of Cyprus", the choreographer of which was the well-known Legrand.

The greatest people who played a significant role in ballet, such as L. Dupin, D. Rossi and W. Garcia, worked within the walls of the theater.

In the nineteenth century, the theater's ballet troupe became the most famous and popular in all of Europe. A littlelater, a ballet school was founded within the walls of La Scala, where the best choreographers taught.

Museum

Next to the theater building, there is another building, which contains many exhibits dedicated not only to La Scala, but to the whole opera art of Italy as a whole. Here you can see costumes, personal belongings and photographs of famous artists, as well as a variety of musical instruments and even several board games that the theater audience of the past was fond of at one time. Most of the collection of these items was bought at auction in the early twentieth century.

Tickets and current rules

In order to get into the theater building, you must follow a certain dress code. Men should be dressed in beautiful formal suits, and ladies in long dresses with covered shoulders.

You can buy tickets to La Scala starting from 25 euros and ending with several hundred. Opening day is the biggest cost of entry, and it's best to book your seats in advance. The rest of the season, you can pay about thirty euros for visiting the theater, and this is taking into account the fact that the chair is in the gallery.

Despite such prices, many opera lovers try to get here at the very beginning of the season.