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Overview
In the footsteps of the great composer
Inaugurated in 1800, designed by Giovanni Francesco Lucchini, after a fire destroyed the original building six years earlier, the Gaetano Donizetti Theatre in Bergamo stands opposite the Sentierone, the most famous avenue in the lower part of the city. This neoclassical building has five central windows engraved with titles of works by this Bergamo-born musician: Lucia di Lammermoor, Favorita, Don Sébastian, Don Pasquale and Linda.
The interior is frescoed by painter Francesco Domenighini and decorated with gilded stuccoes, which were restored to their original splendour after restoration work completed in 2020. The theatre’s calendar features events from opera to prose, from the Bergamo Jazz Festival to gatherings dedicated to modern history.
Intertwined with the history of this theatre is the Teatro Sociale, built a few years later and inaugurated in 1808 thanks to the efforts of 54 Bergamo nobles, who wanted the upper part of the city to have its own place dedicated to music. Since 1974, it has mainly hosted art exhibitions and shows.
You can visit both theatres, either independently or with a guide. Gaetano Donizetti’s birthplace is also open to the public on Sundays.
P.za Camillo Benso Conte di Cavour, 15, 24121 Bergamo BG, Italia
