Milan’s La Scala Theatre stands as the heart of musical tradition. Join me as we uncover the story behind its legendary status.
Let’s imagine living in 18th-century Milan, a rich, elegant city full of enlightened men, which had been ruled for a few years by Maria Theresa of Habsburg, the Austrian Empress. Picture the scene as our time machine moves and returns to Sunday, February 25, 1776: Milan had just concluded the Ambrosian Carnival celebrations (and yes, here the carnival lasts four days longer and ends on a Saturday), and today the city wakes up without its theater, the ducal one located next to the Duomo, destroyed by a disastrous fire.
That theater, as we recall, was often used as a grand hall for celebrations. It was rebuilt a few years earlier on the ruins of an old ballroom. Citizens, the famous box-holders, had almost entirely subsidized it and were given private spaces within. The fire—perhaps started by a poorly extinguished candle or by malicious intent—showed no mercy to the wooden structure. That small theater was devoured by flames in just a few hours.
After the blaze, Milan’s citizens—especially the noble box-holders—quickly urged Archduke Ferdinand, the fourteenth child of Maria Theresa of Austria, to build a new theater. The Empress signed the decree on July 15 that year. The swift approval came thanks to the box-holders, who promised to cover all expenses associated with ownership of the boxes. The government only needed to grant a state-owned site for construction. To make space, they chose to demolish the 15th-century ancient church of Santa Maria alla Scala, built for Barnabò Visconti’s wife. Beatrice Regina Alla Scala, hailing from Verona, commissioned the church; her surname lives on through the theater’s history.
The new theater was designed by the talented court architect Giuseppe Piermarini, from Foligno, and a student of Vanvitelli. Piermarini created a true architectural masterpiece in just two years. The theater was inaugurated on August 3, 1778, with an opera entitled “Europa riconosciuta,” composed specifically for the event by the choirmaster of the Austrian court, Antonio Salieri.
The opening performance was extraordinary. Salieri’s opera begins with a thunderstorm, an unusual yet effective choice.
Fully aware of the Teatro alla Scala’s superior acoustics, Salieri introduced his piece with powerful bass drum rolls, leaving the audience awestruck.
This remarkable effect was no accident. The formidable acoustic effect is due to the auditorium’s horseshoe-shaped layout, a first for theaters of the time, and especially to the wooden vault suspended beneath the roof.
Following its completion, the structure was given the official name of “new royal ducal theater”, but to the citizens, it will immediately and forever be the Teatro Alla Scala.
Today, while one might expect the name to be “Teatro Piermarini,” this name is seldom used by Milan’s residents.
Since its opening in 1778, La Scala has hosted countless performers and audiences. Composers such as Verdi, Bellini, Donizetti, and Puccini have been part of its history. At first, people came more to socialize than for music. For Milanese nobility, the theater was a venue for display and even for cooking in their private spaces. Thus, the theater’s social significance was as important as its artistic one.
Beyond these social affairs, gambling was part of theater life, and the discerning audience, watching from above, shaped performers’ destinies through their reactions.
Over the centuries, La Scala faced challenges. In 1943, bombing destroyed La Scala’s roof, but by May 1946, it reopened, revived under the baton of Arturo Toscanini.
So, while this article isn’t enough to tell you everything I would like, I invite you to come visit me in Milan. Together we’ll visit the small and delightful theatre museum and look out from one of the most coveted stages of Italian theatre, the Teatro alla Scala.
