Verona Arena

The Verona Arena is a Roman amphitheatre, which is internationally famous for the large-scale opera performances.

The building itself was built in AD 30 on a site which was then beyond the city walls. The amphitheatre could host more than 30,000 spectators in ancient times.

The round façade of the building was originally composed of white and pink limestone from Valpolicella; but after a major earthquake in 1117, which almost completely destroyed the structure''s outer ring.

The first 20th-century operatic production at the arena, a staging of Giuseppe Verdi''s Aida, took place on 10 August of 1913, to mark the birth of Verdi a 100 year before in 1813.

Musical luminaries such as Puccini and Mascagni were in attendance. Since then, summer seasons of opera have been mounted continually at the arena, except in 1915-18 and 1940-45, when Europe was convulsed in war.

Nowadays, four productions are mounted each year between June and August.

Dromos