Main partner

Loading...
The history of the Donizetti Theatre2023-06-16T16:24:49+02:00

The Donizetti Theatre in Bergamo has a complex history. It began in the 18th century with the Riccardi Theatre, named after a merchant who built the city’s first permanent theatre on the site where the Donizetti now stands. The Theatre, designed by Giovanni Francesco Lucchini, was inaugurated on 24th August 1791. But the dream lasted only a few years: in 1797 the Theatre was destroyed by fire. The architect Lucchini was commissioned to rebuild it and it was reopened on 30th June 1800. The Theatre was named after Gaetano Donizetti in 1897, to mark the centenary of the Composer’s birth. Since that year, the Theatre, always attentive to experimentation and innovation, has distinguished itself for the quality and variety of its theatrical offerings, becoming one of the most important theatres on the Italian scene.

1791
1797
1800
1840
1897
1937
1938
1948
1953
1954
1964
1968
1982
2017

1791

INAUGURATION RICCARDI THEATRE

1797

FIRE

1800

RECONSTRUCTION

1840

GAETANO DONIZETTI AT THE RICCARDI

1897

DONIZETTI THEATRE

1937

THE THEATRE OF NEW MUSICAL FEATURES

1938

A MUNICIPAL THEATRE

1948

THE RENAISSANCE DONIZETTI

1953

THE THEATRE OF NEW PROSE

1954

MARIA CALLAS AT THE DONIZETTI THEATRE

1964

REOPENING WITH LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR CONDUCTED BY GAVAZZENI

1968

THE DONIZETTI AS A TRADITIONAL THEATRE

1982

SPECIAL WORKS AND NEW FOYER

2017

THE BUILDING SITE OF THE NEW DONIZETTI THEATRE

Go to Top