The Ventidio Basso Theater is the communal theater, concert hall, and opera house in the city of

Ascoli Piceno Ascoli Piceno (; la, Asculum; dialetto ascolano: Ascule) is a town and ''comune'' in the Marche region of Italy, capital of the province of the same name. Its population is around 46,000 but the urban area of the city has more than 93,000. Geo ...

region of

Marche Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...

, Italy. It is located on via del Trivio, in front main cloister of the church of San Francesco, near piazza del Popolo. The exterior was erected in neoclassical-style, with grand interiors.

History

Ascoli Piceno had a communal theater since 1579, located at the site of the palazzo Anzianale. In 1839, the then-existing Teatro Comunale di Legno closed for performances. In order to build a larger arena, a design was commissioned in 1827 from

Ireneo Aleandri Ireneo Aleandri (1795–1885) was an Italian architect of the Neoclassic period. He was born in San Severino Marche, but studied at the Accademia di San Luca in Rome. In his youth, he completed a number of restorations and buildings in his nati ...

and construction pursued from 1840 to 1846, when it stopped due to lack of funds. However construction was then sponsored by the engineer Marco Massimi and the merchant Gabriele Gabrielli, and directed by the architect Giambattista Carducci. The facade is sober with an entrance through an ionic colonnade. The second floor has a temple front tympanum with pilasters. The atrium is decorated with stucco statues by Giorgio and Emidio Paci, depicting Apollo and Minerva, the muses of tragedy, comedy, music, and dance. The theater ceiling was decorated by Ferdinando Cicconi, with medallions depicting ''Donizetti'', ''Rossini'', ''Bellini'', and ''Verdi''. Cesare Recanatini painted for the Theater a curtain a Vedute of the Piazza del Popolo. Another sipario depicts the ''Triumph of Ventidio Basso for his Victory over the Parthians'' by Vincenzo Podesti (brother of

Francesco Francesco, the Italian (and original) version of the personal name " Francis", is the most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name include: People with the given name Francesco * Francesco I (disambiguation), sev ...

). The theater has four rows of balconies with seating for over 800 spectators. In 1846, the first performances were of the operas of ''

Ernani ''Ernani'' is an operatic ''dramma lirico'' in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the 1830 play ''Hernani (drama), Hernani'' by Victor Hugo. Verdi was commissioned by the Teatro La Fenice in V ...

'' and

I Puritani ' (''The Puritans'') is an 1835 opera by Vincenzo Bellini. It was originally written in two acts and later changed to three acts on the advice of Gioachino Rossini, with whom the young composer had become friends. The music was set to a libretto ...

, with the soprano

Anna De la Grange Anna de La Grange de Stankowitch (1825–1905) was a French coloratura soprano. She was one of the most noted opera singers of the nineteenth century, a protégée of Rossini and Meyerbeer, and played Violetta in the American premiere of Verdi's ...

, in leading roles. She is one of the busts in the atrium. Refurbishments over the years include electric lighting (1907) and cinema projector (1917). The theater was closed for restoration in 1979, to re-open only in 1994. Recently, the theater has hosted performances from the Rete Lirica delle Marche.

Name of the Theater

The theater is named for Ventidio Basso, a prisoner during the Social Wars of the Roman Republic. He became a military and political leader for Julius Caesar and Marc Antony. Ventidio was honored with a triumph for a victory against the Parthians in 38-39 B.C.Teatro Ventidio Basso
official site.

References

{{authority control Opera houses in Italy Theatres in le Marche Buildings and structures in Ascoli Piceno Theatres completed in 1846 Music venues completed in 1846 19th-century architecture in Italy