Teatro Bibiena

Mantua, Italy

Constructed for the Royal Virgilian Academy of Science and Arts (Accademia Virgiliana), the Teatro Bibiena di Mantova was designed in late Baroque or early Rococo style by Antonio Galli Bibiena and erected between 1767 and 1769. With a bell-shaped floorplan and four rows of boxes, it followed the new style of theatres then in vogue. It was intended to host both theatre productions and concerts, and scientific discourses and conventions. Bibiena also provided the monochrome frescoes in the interior. The theatre is now considered to be his most important work.

It was opened officially on 3 December 1769. A few weeks later, on 16 January 1770, thirteen-year-old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart played a concert here, with resounding success.

In 1773, Giuseppe Piermarini, who constructed the neighbouring palazzo for the Accademia Virgiliana, designed and built the façade of the theatre.

Still used for its original purposes, it now can also be visited by tourists as one of Mantua's museums. The theatre is relatively small, with a scene 12,3 metres wide and 5,6 metres deep, and a maximum audience of 363 persons.

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Details

Founded: 1767
Category: Miscellaneous historic sites in Italy

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

4.7/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Jon Dolton (7 months ago)
Amazing place. Beautiful auditorium; a chance to stand on the stage on which Mozart made his performance debut.
Matteo Barucco (7 months ago)
A masterpiece to visit in 10 minutes. Off the beaten tracks and young Mozart favourite. You don't wanna miss this atmosphere.
Gabriele Sani (11 months ago)
It is a little jewel. Always worth a visit.
Yury Villagrán (16 months ago)
It's a nice theater, but if you want to visit it when there's no play ongoing, they will charge you 3 euro and don't let go in much further than the ground floor, i.e. for a 5 min visit.
José Aguasvivas (2 years ago)
A small and beautiful theater full of history!
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