Teatro Massimo

The Teatro Massimo Vittorio Emanuele, on Piazza Giuseppe Verdi in Palermo, Sicily, Italy, is the largest opera house in Italy and one of the largest in Europe. It was designed by the Palermo architect Giovan Battista Filippo Basile, who won the competition in 1864 and began work in 1875 on the site of the demolished church of Sant'Agata and the convent of the Stigmata. Basile died in 1891 and the building was completed by his son Ernesto, opening on 16 May 1897 with a performance of Verdi's Falstaff. The theatre is a monumental neoclassical design with a Corinthian portico, a broad flight of steps flanked by bronze lions, and a large copper dome. The interior is horseshoe-shaped with five tiers of boxes and a gallery, decorated in red and gold, with a ceiling painted by Rocco Lentini and an unusual retractable central section that was designed to allow ventilation. The Sala Pompeiana, a circular foyer in the Pompeian style, and the Royal Box add to the decorative scheme. After decades of use, the theatre closed in 1974 for restoration, which lasted more than twenty years because of administrative delays. It reopened in 1997, and the long closure became a symbol of Palermo's decline and renewal. The building also gained international fame as the setting of the final scene of The Godfather Part III. Today it is the home of the Fondazione Teatro Massimo, with a season of opera, ballet and concerts. Guided tours show the main hall, the Royal Box and the foyers, and they provide some insight into the history of construction and restoration. The theatre is in good condition and is well maintained. Its large scale and central position make it a landmark of the city's late 19th-century history.