Como

Teatro Sociale

An 1813 Italian-style theatre, its horseshoe auditorium beside the cathedral.

Visit duration: 2 h – 3 h
Booking: Required
Area: First Basin

Lorenzo Gaudenzi · CC BY-SA 4.0

Fuljack · CC BY-SA 4.0
Maurizio Moro5153 · CC BY-SA 4.0

Why go

The Teatro Sociale was built between 1811 and 1813 to a design by Giuseppe Cusi, beside the cathedral, where the castle of the Torre Rotonda once stood.

It was built by the Società dei Palchettisti, the owners of the boxes, who still own it, and opened on 28 August 1813. In 1854–56 the auditorium was enlarged with new boxes. Today it has five tiers: three of boxes, including the royal box, and two of galleries, with 999 seats in all. The historic curtain, painted by the stage designer Alessandro Sanquirico, shows the death of the Como-born Pliny the Elder in the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79. The theatre has opera, symphonic and drama seasons and is part of the OperaLombardia circuit.

An opera evening in a nineteenth-century horseshoe theatre.

Highlights

The horseshoe auditorium
The OperaLombardia season

Getting there

In the centre of Como, next to the cathedral.

The Sala dello Zodiaco, its carved wooden coffered ceiling and painted walls.

Practical information

Address: Via Vincenzo Bellini 3, 22100 Como
Telephone: +39 031 270170

Facilities

Car park 76 m away · paid
Public toilets 77 m away

Distances from the point on the map.

Webcams

Como, the city and the first basinLive video · Skyline Webcams · 150 m
Brunate, looking northUpdated image · Ristorante Hotel Falchetto, su WeatherCam · 1.3 km