The theatre is located in the “Rocca”, or fortress, once the castle of the Pallavicino family, founded in the 1200s but heavily altered. Today the “Rocca” appears to us as it did in the second half of the 1800s.
Previously there had been another theatre in the exact same location, where Verdi had performed in his youth, directing a symphony from Rossini’s Barber of Seville.
The idea of building a new theatre was already circulating around town in 1845 but the project was abandoned until the Municipality bought the “Rocca” in 1856.
Construction took place in the years between 1856 and 1868 regardless of the Maestro’s resistance to the idea. He opposed the townspeople because he felt they had invaded his private life and because he felt the new theatre to be “too expensive and useless for the future”.
On 15th August 1868, at the theatre’s solemn inauguration, when all the ladies present wore green while the gentlemen all had to wear green ties in his honour [“Verdi” is in fact the plural of the adjective “verde” whose English translation is “green”], Verdi himself was visibly absent even though two of his operas were performed: The Masked Ball and Rigoletto. Even afterwards, he was careful not to set foot in the theatre despite having contributed the remarkable sum of LIT10,000 for its construction and owning a box. The theatre, designed by the architect Pier Luigi Montecchini, is entered from the porticoes, and then by climbing a large staircase adorned with a bust of Verdi by Giovanni Dupré. The decorations are by Giuseppe Baisi and Alessandro Malpeli of Parma, while the ceiling medallions, representing Comedy, Tragedy, Melodrama and Romantic Drama are works of art by Isacco Gioacchino Levi of Busseto (1865).
The theatre, equipped with all of the most practical facilities right from the start, was recently restored, brought up to standard and reopened. It can hold 300 people.
FROM TUESDAY TO SUNDAY from 9.30 am to 12.30(*) am and from 3.00 pm to 6.00(*) pm
Close on Monday.
Open on Monday 2nd November 2020, Monday 7th December 2020, Saturday 26th December 2020 and Thursday 31st December 2020 in the morning.
Close on 25th December 2020 and January 1° 2021. (*) Last guided tour
Single Ticket:
Full Price € 4.00 Reduced “A” € 3.00 (for groups over 20 people – children aged 6 to 14 years – adults over 65 years old – TCI member) Reduced “B” € 2.00 (for schools in cultural trip – free for accompanying teachers)
Combined ticket Birthplace, Verdi Theatre and Casa Barezzi:
Full Price € 11.00 Reduced “A” € 9.50 (for groups over 20 people – children aged 6 to 14 years – adults over 65 years old – TCI member) Reduced “B” € 6.50 (for schools in cultural trip – free for accompanying teachers)
Combined ticket Birthplace, Verdi Theatre, Casa Barezzi, Renata Tebaldi Museum and Museo del Violino di Cremona (compulsory reservation):
5 Museums € 14,00 (only for groups of minimum 15 people)
Combined ticket Verdi Theatre, Renata Tebaldi Museum and Museo del Violino di Cremona (compulsory reservation)
3 Museums € 10,00 (for schools in cultural trip – free for accompanying teachers )
Verdi Tourist Card holders are entitled to the reduced ticket at the Places of Verdi in Busseto and at the Museo del Violino in Cremona
Museo del Violino ticket holders are entitled to the reduced ticket at following Museums: Birthpalce in Roncole Verdi, Giuseppe Verdi Theatre, Casa Barezzi Museum and Renata Tebaldi Museum (for individual only)
Compulsory reservation for groups of minimum 15 people
We inform our kind visitors that guided tours will not be possible during performances at Giuseppe Verdi Theatre. For any further information please contact us at: +39.0524.92487 – info@bussetolive.com
We apologize for any inconvenience.
Piazza Giuseppe Verdi, Busseto, PR, Italia Tel. 0524.92487 e-mail: info@bussetolive.com
October 2016
Giugno 2016 – Il prestigioso concorso per le migliori voci del repertorio verdiano giunge alla 54° edizione
Domenica 11 settembre 2016 – Evento inserito nelle celebrazioni ufficiali del 150° Anniversario delle relazioni tra Giappone e Italia.
We open up our world and our heart, to let you live and not just visit, Verdi's land.