Grand Teatro la Fenice

The Opera house in Venice is called Teatro La Fenice. It was first built in 1792 as a replacement for the burnt-down San Benedetto Theatre. The name means the Phoenix, the mythical bird that raises from the aches. It burned down to the ground two more times, in 1836, reopened in 1837, and most recently in 1996. It was reopened in 2003. 

Well, theaters that burn, may sound like a rare event to the public of today, but in the 18th century, there was no electricity. And as the theater stage somehow had to be illuminated anyway, they used flammables such as candles and oil lamps. These were put in rows at the front of the stage. Reflectors mirrored the light towards the stage and they could be closed to create darkness without blowing out the candle. This line of light was called the footlights.

The border lights illuminated the stage from above and the striplights from the sides. Young boys had the job to regulate the lights, and cleaning up the candle wax, which tended to drip, run and create smoke. 

The decor was in fabric or even in papier-mâché, and anyone who has seen a theater backstage during a performance knows how much running, moving, shouting, and carrying it involves. A less fire-safe surrounding is difficult to imagine. And theaters burned to the ground in every corner of Europe. It is a small miracle that we still have a few of the old ones still operational to this day. 

Teatro San Benedetto

In the 18th century, Venice was a sanctuary for anyone with money who searched for entertainment. There were taverns, bars, and classy restaurants… And although the carnival was somewhat limited in late 1700, there were plenty of possibilities for secret meetings incognito, and to play games of various nature and variable modesty. Prostitution was everywhere. Unfortunately, the theatre in those days was a perfect place to make acquaintances, i.e. pick up girls. 

In Venice, at the beginning of 1700, there were about 20 theaters. The City with its wealth and extraordinary beauty attracted people with money. And, while in many other European metropoles, the theatres were closely connected to the court, in Venice they were much more in the hands of the open market.

At the end of 1700, seven theaters remained. Two for drama, and five (!) for opera. And the biggest and most luxurious of them was Teatro San Benedetto. It burnt down in 1774. Before the fire, the theatre was owned by a group of financially solid box holders. The ground on which it stood, on the other hand, belonged to the Venier family. 

After the fire, it was rebuilt and reopened in the same year, 1774. But constant quarreling between the box-holders consortium and the Venier family resulted in a court order saying that the ownership should return to the Veniers. 

The ultra-rich box holders were frustrated. So they decided to make an effort to build a bigger, more luxurious, and better theatre close by. And so the Teatro La Fenice was built. More as a provocation than anything else. 

Gran Teatro La Fenice

In 1792 she was ready. It was a marvelous building and soon it became the number one opera house in Venice, as well as one of the most important in the world. Here’s a short list of all the world premiers that have happened in the Fenice opera house. The Gran – Big, at the beginning of the name was added by the owners, to ultimately show the Veniers who had the upper hand.