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Restorations: 2006-2009

The restoration work, begun in 2006 and completed in May 2009, delivers to the city a historic theater completely recovered. The foyer floors were resurfaced, the surviving walls, ceilings and finishes were restored, and a new entrance door was installed. Discreet integrative retouches were made to the wooden parapets of the boxes with cabinet work, fixing and protection of the decorations, and restoration of the gaps. The restoration of the first three tiers of boxes (totaling about 550 seats), the resurfacing of the floors, the insertion of a steel structure to reinforce the existing wooden one, the sectioning of the tiers into boxes by means of new partitions, according to the original design, were implemented, the reinforcement of the parapets, the wooden and pictorial restoration of the pillars and suspended ceilings, the construction of the heating, cooling and fire-fighting systems, and the rebuilding of the electrical and lighting system, as well as the provision of adequate restrooms. For the fourth order, the gallery, static consolidation was planned in order to make it easily available for public access in the future through simple completion operations. The return of the Sociale to its original theatrical vocation has also meant the installation of a modern stage machine, with new stage and trellis, while the orchestral pit has been equipped with a mechanical platform that can be raised on three levels. Finally, three new levels of dressing rooms were built to the right of the stage. Today the Teatro Sociale is used by the Donizetti Theater Foundation for staging a number of plays and operas and for holding jazz concerts. It is, in addition, the main location for the Other Paths festival. << PREVIOUS

Restorations: 2006-20092024-11-07T17:10:26+01:00

The project for an Italian-style theater

Leopoldo Pollack, among the most celebrated architects of the Neoclassical period, was entrusted with the project for the new theater; he was chosen because he was already an expert in the theatrical field and was known in Bergamo for other work. A fine artist, he had also worked for Piermarini-the architect of La Scala-and had been his pupil. Pollack decided on an Italian-style theater with multiple tiers of boxes, which realized the need for public visibility of the aristocratic classes and their hierarchical relationships. As for the layout of the stalls, Pollack chose not to repeat the horse-shaped floor plan dominant at the time, opting instead for a more refined and elegant oval shape in the French style .. The combination of this shape with the vertical development of the boxes constitutes perhaps the most original aspect of the project. When the public first saw the theater there was much appreciation, but also some criticism. Some did not like the curve of the boxes, which seemed not to allow an optimal view; perplexities were advanced about the clutter of the columns at the entrance that were the work of Antonio Bottani, the architect who had continued the project after Pollack's death. The opening night was, however, successful as evidenced by the testimony of the Prefect of Bergamo Frangipane who wrote: "On the evening of the current 26th the opening of the new Teatro della Società took place. With the Theater elegantly adorned, the skill of the first actors, the richness of dress and scenery, everything proceeded with the utmost good order, and with perfect tranquility." DECORATION. Decorations gracing the ceiling and parapets were made for the Teatro Sociale by Vincenzo Bonomini and Francesco Pirovani. Bonomini, a talented decorator and figurist, had also proposed a design for the decoration of the vault, which was later not approved because he preferred the figurative one by Lattanzio Querena. THE PALACES. The Social Theater 's 82 boxes are distributed on three superimposed tiers, on which a fourth tier of gallery insists. Pollack designed the wooden parapets of the boxes according to a continuous line, as Piermarini had done for La Scala; it emphasizes the horizontal dimension of the tiers of boxes and gives the overall shape of the hall a harmonious uniformity in the classical style.. The wooden parapets were rich in polychrome decorations, often gaudy, like the colors of the interior walls also sometimes ornamented with faux marble, and in contrast to the poor materials of the floors and lime vaults. THE OUTSIDE. Pollack could only partially adopt the new strategies that were gaining popularity in those years: prevented by the narrowness of Corsarola Street from accompanying the Social Theater with a monumental façade, portico, colonnade or whatever else would have made it possible to identify a theater at a glance - and the example is again Piermarini's La Scala - he had to make do with an elegant façade, yes, but without a solution of continuity with the neighboring buildings. Only

The project for an Italian-style theater2024-11-07T17:09:58+01:00

The transformations of the theater

The difficulties of the Social Theater, towards the end of the 19th century, became emblematic of those of the Upper Town. Sporadic openings gave only a semblance "of that past life, which an unstoppable, overpowering force has pushed elsewhere," as the local newspaper commented in December 1878. Already during the Austrian years, the construction of the Porta Nuova propylaea and the Ferdinandea road, but above all of the station and its railroad connection with Milan (1857), constituted as many stages in the emancipation of the Lower Town, crowned in 1872 with the relocation of the Town Hall. The opening of the funicular railway in 1887 would improve relations between the two parts of the city, but the fortunes of theSocial Theater would equally tend to decline. A significant indicator of that decline was the Sociale's substantial marginality at the 1897 Donizetti celebrations, which had instead in the Riccardi and Lower Town center and backdrop. Around 1900 and in the first decade of the century, the hall (undergoing restoration in 1902, visible in the 1903 season; then in 1907, for the 1908 season) would also open to new genres such asoperetta (1898, from 1908), or even to performances of modern technology such as the gramophone (1898) and the cinematograph (from 1908), which, while in other conditions might be signs of openness to novelty, in that context of increasingly difficult life appear as retreats to less demanding repertoires. Good seasons will still occur, in 1915, and less sporadically in the early 1920s (1921, 1922 and 1924): but that for the Social Theater had begun a new era of prosperity, was a short-lived illusion. Music resonated there until 1929; the last performances date back to 1932. Subsequent history is marked only by demolition projects, adventuristic reuse intentions, and continuous changes of ownership. This while abandonment and decay became increasingly worrisome, at least until the acquisition of the building by the City of Bergamo (1974) and the extraordinary maintenance and safety works carried out between 1978 and 1981. Since then, the space has mainly hosted art exhibitions and expositions, until the definition and beginning of the restoration work undertaken through the joint initiative of the Municipality and the Superintendence since 2006. << PREVIOUS NEXT >>

The transformations of the theater2024-11-07T17:08:55+01:00

“D’incanto”: the reopening of Bergamo’s Donizetti Theater after restoration

Starting Friday, May 28, a month-long celebration of guided tours, performances and concerts under the banner of the diverse art forms that enliven the city theater's programmingTicket reservations starting Tuesday, May 11 Nearly a year has passed since there were hopes to reopen the doors of Bergamo's restored Donizetti Theater to the public-a year marked by unexpected and unpredictable happenings. In spite of everything, the Donizetti Theater Foundation has continued to work and produce when possible (e.g., the all-streamed Donizetti Opera festival in November 2020) while waiting to finally welcome the public into the theater. Now the conditions for resuming performance activities seem to be more propitious, and from Friday, May 28, the public will be able to visit the restored Donizetti Theater and participate in the first activities, a month-long reopening festival that is a summation of the diverse expressions that have a home on this stage."At last we can announce the reopening of the Donizetti Theater," Giorgio Gori, mayor of Bergamo, stresses: a fundamental piece of our city and its cultural life is rekindled after a long and meticulous restoration, the result of the commitment of so many parties and the fruitful collaboration between the public and private sectors. I would like to thank all those who have made this achievement possible, the offices of the City of Bergamo, the Donizetti Theater Foundation, the sponsors and public and private partners, and the companies that have maintained, despite the pandemic emergency, the expectations on the timing of the completion of the construction site. After Donizetti Opera 2020, which marked, even if only by streaming and without an audience, the restart of performances in our most important theater, we are now ready to reopen to the city: on the calendar there are already many initiatives, to allow Bergamasks - who have always been great theater lovers - to return to enjoy the atmosphere of the renovated Donizetti. We are also working to improve the public space of our city center around the theater, and this 2021 will be a year of profound renewal for the Sentierone space, a system of which the Donizetti is a candidate to be the beating heart. Let's hope that the pandemic situation will continue to improve and that we can, safely, gradually bring audiences back to our country's theaters: culture can really be the key to grieving and mourning the pandemic in our area and to relaunch Bergamo, with the great appointment of the Italian Capital of Culture 2023, shared with its cousins in Brescia, to act as a stimulus and horizon for this sector that has been so hard hit over the past year. Welcome back Donizetti Theater." "D'incanto" is the title of the reopening journey, which thus begins with a weekend(May 28, 29 and 30) featuring a continuous program of theatricalized, original and immersive guided tours called Donizetti On - Live from an idea, text and direction by Francesco Venturi. An audio guide makes sure that it is the theater itself that speaks

“D’incanto”: the reopening of Bergamo’s Donizetti Theater after restoration2024-11-07T16:53:29+01:00

The origins of the Social Theater

The Society Theater, this was the original name, opened its doors in the 1809 Carnival season.. It was born on the wave of competition between the upper and lower cities: it was to rival the Riccardi Theater (today's Donizetti Theater) to restore to the upper city the supremacy that the new lower city theater was undermining. It was built thanks to the interest of 54 noblemen from Bergamo, representatives of the City's most prominent families. About 20 of them also owned a stage at the Riccardi Theater, but a dispute with the impresario prompted them to build one for themselves directly. On March 3, 1803 a document was drafted by notary Tiraboschi, nothing was left to chance and everything was put on stamped paper. Promoter appears to have been Count Vailetti. The plan called for three tiers of boxes and a gallery; there would also be a ticket office, a coffee room, a members' meeting room, and one or two Ridotto rooms useful for welcoming the audience during breaks in performances. The fee provided for each member was 5,000 liras, which, multiplied by 54 members, came to 270,000 liras, to be paid in two installments. A few months later, in 1804, work began. The Sociale was not the first theater in Upper Town; it was, however, the only one to be built in masonry. L'inauguration took place on December 26, 1808 with the opera Hippolyta Queen of the Amazons, specially commissioned from Stefano Pavesi. A few days later it would be the turn of Ginevra di Scozia by Giovanni Simone Mayr. A fine billboard that, of course, fueled the rivalry with the Riccardi Theater. In memory of that evening there still remains a poster with a prefectorial decree issued for the occasion in which it was ordered that the carriages, whether coming from the boroughs or from the Upper Town, should take a specific route to avoid traffic jams. It was also decided that the portico of the Palazzo della Ragione would remain available to the vehicles for temporary parking until the end of the performance. That evening hundreds of candles highlighted the decorations. The Teatro Sociale was active, with mixed fortunes, until the 1920s. Its later fortunes were a reflection of the decline of Città Alta as the propelling center of Bergamo's social and cultural life. The restoration and recovery of the theater to its original purpose now attest to a new centrality of Città Alta, and the now achieved integration of both city entities: the ancient city and the suburbs that have grown up at its foot. NEXT >>

The origins of the Social Theater2024-11-07T17:07:11+01:00
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