The original 3,000-seat theatre, surmounted by a large
cupola, was constructed in the traditional horseshoe shape, with two tiers of boxes and a large gallery (or
loggione) which alone contained more than 1000 seats. It opened on 14 September 1872 with a production of
Meyerbeer's
Les Huguenots and soon established itself as one of Italy's most important opera houses. During its "golden years", the theatre saw the world premieres of
Puccini's
Le Villi (31 May 1884),
Leoncavallo's
Pagliacci (21 May 1892),
I Medici (9 November 1893) and
Cowen's
Signa (12 November 1893). It also saw the Italian premiere of
Lehár's
The Merry Widow (27 April 1907). By the 1930s, the theatre was mainly being used as a cinema. It was then severely damaged by American
aerial bombardment during
World War II, It now has a large modern auditorium, the
Sala Grande, with 1420 seats, a smaller performing space known as the
Sala Piccola, with 200 seats, and a space for exhibitions and conferences, the
Sala Terrazzo. Since the reopening in April 2001, it has been administered by the
Fondazione I Pomeriggi Musicali, whose orchestra (the
Orchestra i Pomeriggi Musicali) is resident at the theatre. ==Sources==