Teatro La Fenice

The stage of the Teatro La Fenice in 2005

Teatro La Fenice is a famous opera house in Venice, Italy. People often call it simply La Fenice. Its name comes from the Italian word Fenice, meaning Phoenix. The Phoenix is a mythical bird. It dies in fire and is born again from the ashes.

History

An older opera house in Venice called the Teatro San Benedetto burnt down in 1774. It was the main, opera house in Venice. Some noblemen built it again, but the Venier, a famous family in Venice, made them sell the new theatre to them. So, the noblemen built a new opera house in 1792. They called it Teatro La Fenice. The first opera performed there was Giovanni Paisiello's I giochi di Agrigento (The Games of Agrigento).^[1]

La Fenice burnt down in 1836. It was built again in 1837. On 29 January 1996, La Fenice burnt down again. It was set on fire by two men working on the building. They were sent to prison for arson.^[2] La Fenice was built again in 2003 in the style of the old one.^[3] The architect, Aldo Rossi, used pictures and movies of the old La Fenice to plan the new one.

Five of Giuseppe Verdi's operas had their first performance at Teatro La Fenice:

Ernani (1844)
Attila (1846)
Rigoletto (1851)
La traviata (1853)
Simon Boccanegra (1857)

Teatro La Fenice Media

Façade of La Fenice in 2013
Interior of first theatre, 1829
Interior of La Fenice in 1837
Interior of La Fenice in 2015
In the auditorium of the Teatro La Fenice, Venice, Italy.
Part of the Foyer of La Fenice
La Fenice Opera House from the stage
La Fenice Opera House, The Royal Box
The Sala Ammannati is a part of the Sale Apollinee at La Fenice Opera House in Venice
The Sala Grande or ballroom is the main room of the five Sale Apollinee, lit by three windows in the middle of the entrance façade