The Teatro comunale Riccardo Zandonai, on corso Bettini in Rovereto, was the first theatre in Trentino: it opened in 1784 under the name Teatro Sociale. It grew out of the initiative of some Rovereto aristocrats, Count Francesco Alberti Poja with his wife Eleonora Piomarta, backed by Cavaliere Luigi Carpentari, owner of large silk-throwing mills; part of the money came from selling the boxes in advance. In 1782 the contract was signed with the builders Clemente Colomba and Giovanni Battista Tacchi; the name of the designer does not appear.
What to see
The Italian-style theatre with boxes was chosen, and the model was the Filarmonico in Verona. For almost ninety years the building had no real façade, with a canopy and a wooden atrium at the entrance: the masonry front was raised only with the restoration of 1871-1872.
A first restoration had been carried out after the sale of 1823 to four private owners, and the theatre had reopened in 1828: the great auditorium was judged a success, though some decorations of the ceiling were lost.
Visiting
Season, tickets and visits should be checked on the theatre's website or with Rovereto town council.
Our editors' tip
The inauguration, according to the chronicles, was held with three operas: two by Domenico Cimarosa and «La Moda» by Antonio Salieri. In 1822 Emperor Francis I, visiting Rovereto, came to see an opera here. The theatre now bears the name of the composer Riccardo Zandonai, born at Sacco.
