Teatro La Fenice ★★

Teatro La Fenice opera house in Venice
La Fenice at a performance of "Carmen." (Photo by Michele Crosera, courtesy of Teatro La Fenice)

The Venice opera house

The exterior of La Fenice opera house, Venezia
The exterior of La Fenice. (Photo by Michele Crosera, courtesy of Teatro La Fenice)
Venice's original opera house was called San Benedetto, but that burned down in 1774, so a new one was built and christened La Fenice ("The Phoenix").

It has since has to rise from the ashes, quite literally, two other times.

The 1790–92 version also burned down in 1836, but that time was quickly rebuilt as a "modern" 19th century opera house, which opened in 1837 and was soon hosting world premieres by Giuseppe VerdiAtilla, Rigoletto, La Traviata—Rossini (Tancredi), Bellini (I Capuleti e i Montecchi), Benjamin Britten (The Turn of the Screw), and Igor Sravinsky (The Rake's Progress).

In January, 1996, the city stood still in shock as La Fenice once again burned to the ground in the middle of a long and extensive renovation.

The interior of La Fenice opera house, Venezia
The interior of La Fenice. (Photo courtesy of Teatro La Fenice)
Actually, the renovations had been going on a bit too long, and that was why it burned: It was arson.

In 2001, two electricians who had been working on the renovations were found guilty of starting the fire on purpose (they somehow figured this would clear their company of the large fines about to be imposed for their continual delays).

After a raging debate over whether to recreate the 19th century design or to be bold and go modern (affection for the old won that round), reconstruction started yet again.

In just 650 days a team of 200 artisans and builders had rebuilt the theater to its 1836 design—though somehow also managing to boost the seating capacity to 1,000.

Inaugural concerts in December 2003 included appearances by Riccardo Muti, musical director of Milan's La Scala, and Elton John.

La Fenice reopened its official 2004 season with a performance of—what else?—La Traviata, and has since regained its status among the world's top opera houses.

image
Duration: 2–4 hours
Cost: From $32 per person
Book: Reserve it

Opera at Teatro La Fenice

Like the Phoenix for which the theatre is named, Teatro La Fenice finally rose from the ashes in November 2004. Following a devastating fire in 1996 that nearly burned the famous opera house to the ground, massive reconstruction took place to restore the theatre to its original splendor. Known worldwide for its dramatic beauty, La Fenice is also known for being the cradle of many great operas. It was the site of the infamous fiasco at the premiere of La Traviata, and of the great triumphs of Tancredi...

 

Tips & links

Details

Teatro La Fenice ★★
Campo San Fantin 1965 (San Marco)
Vaporetto: Giglio, S. Angelo, or Rialto
tel. +39-041-786-511
www.teatrolafenice.it
Buy tickets: Select Italy

How do I get tickets?

The opera season at La Fenice now runs pretty much year-round—alongside orchestral concerts, ballets, and other performances.

You can buy tickets at the box office or ahead of time though Select Italy.

The "City of Falling Angels" book

In 2006, American journalist John Berendt, famous for his book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil," wrote "City of Falling Angels."

This fascinating account of the 1996 La Fenice fire and its aftermath is peopled, in typcial Berendt style, by quirky Venetian characters and packed with incisive insights about Venice and Venetian society. Well worth a read.

Find Venice activities and experiences

 

Venice links & resources

Share this page

Intrepid Travel 25% off

Search ReidsItaly.com

Details
Teatro La Fenice ★★
Campo San Fantin 1965 (San Marco)
Vaporetto: Giglio, S. Angelo, or Rialto
tel. +39-041-786-511
www.teatrolafenice.it
Buy tickets: Select Italy
Links


Useful links
TK
Train tix

Shortcuts to popular planning sections:

Airfares, Cars, Trains, Tours, Packages, Cruises, Lodging, Itineraries, Info, Packing, Prep, Comm

Follow ReidsItaly
Follow ReidsItaly on Twitter  Join the ReidsItaly fan page  Follow Reids Italy Adventures blog