Arena di Verona, mega-event to celebrate Italian Opera Unesco Heritage

"I have been attending opera houses for more than forty years and I can say that I have never witnessed an evening like this, which will see a chorus of 300 performers on the stage of the Arena, 160 of whom come from our theatre and the others from opera foundations throughout Italy. As well as the 50 members of the orchestra who will join our 90 musicians'. Cecilia Gasdia, superintendent of the Arena di Verona, does not hide her enthusiasm for the event that kicked off the opera season at the Veronese theatre and at the same time was a great celebration of Italian opera, to celebrate the inclusion of Bel Canto in the Unesco World Heritage List, which took place last 7 December.

The concert 'La Grande Opera Italiana Patrimonio dell'Umanità', scheduled for Friday 7 June, was realised by the Ministry of Culture in cooperation with the Fondazione Arena di Verona and RAI, which broadcast it worldwide.

The evening - also attended by President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni - was 'sold out', with 12.500 seats occupied and several mega-screens around the city - as was the premiere of Turandot, which opens the summer programme on Saturday 8 June: 50 evenings until 7 September, with five opera titles (in addition to Turandot, also Carmen, Bohème, Aida in two productions and the Barber of Seville) and six special events, including two evenings of dance with Roberto Bolle and the return of Zorba the Greek after last year's success, as well as concerts (Beethoven's Ninth, Carmina Burana and Vivaldi's Four Seasons).

A season that promises to be under the best auspices, after the excellent results achieved last year, when the Arena achieved its best ever box office, with 33 million euro from tickets and over 400 thousand spectators. "To date, ticket sales are higher than last year's number for the same date, but we have to wait until August to have a more precise estimate,' says Gasdia, who as a woman of show business remains superstitious and therefore does not commit herself, but admits: 'Our goal is to exceed last year's results.