Description of the attraction
Teatro Massimo, located in Piazza Verdi in Palermo, is the largest opera house in Italy and one of the largest in all of Europe. In addition, its unique acoustics are known all over the world. The theater is named after the first king of the united Italy, Victor Emmanuel II. An interesting fact - it was here that the final scenes of the legendary film "The Godfather 3" were filmed.
The construction of the theater began in January 1874 at the initiative of the City of Palermo. And before that, for a long 10 years, an international competition was held for the best project of an opera house, which, according to the plan of its organizers, was to serve as a reminder of the creation of a new European state - a united Italy. The winner of the competition was the architect Giovanni Battista Filippo Basile, who began the construction of the building. However, less than a few months later, the construction was frozen for as long as 8 years and resumed only in 1890. A year later, Basile died, and his son Ernesto got down to business, who brought the construction to the end 22 years after its start. On May 16, 1897, the opera house was inaugurated - the first production was Giuseppe Verdi's opera Falstaff, conducted by Leopoldo Munone.
The architect Basile made his creation in the neoclassical style with elements of Greek temples, as he was sincerely admired by the ancient Sicilian architecture. At the same time, the main auditorium, which seats up to 3 thousand people and has the shape of a horseshoe with seven boxes, is decorated in the style of the late Renaissance. Inside you can see sculptures of the world's great composers by the Italian Giusto Livi and his sons.
In the 20th century, a serious restoration was carried out in the theater building - it began in 1974 and, due to the political crises of those years, stretched out for 23 long years. The renovated theater opened its doors to the public a few days before the centenary - on May 12, 1997. However, the opera season did not open until 1999 - during those two years, performances were staged in small theaters in the neighborhood.
