La Scala Opera
A mellow place to purchase La Scala Opera Tickets is this site.You need know nothing of opera to sense that, like Carnegie Hall, La Scala is closer to a cathedral than an auditorium. Here Verdi established his reputation and Maria Callas sang her way into opera lore. It looms as a symbol -- both for the performer who dreams of singing here and for the opera buff who knows every note of Rigoletto by heart. Audiences are notoriously fickle and have been known to jeer performers who do not do appropriate justice to their beloved opera lirica. The opera house was closed after destruction by Allied bombs in 1943, reopened at a performance led by Arturo Toscanini in 1946, and closed again in 2002 for long-overdue renovations. The massive modern reconstruction project, which left only the exterior shell standing, is officially completed as of the December 7, 2004, reopening, though final touches may extend into 2005.
At Museo Teatrale alla Scala you can admire librettos, posters, costumes, instruments, and design sketches for the theater, curtains, and viewing box decorations, along with an explanation of the reconstruction project and several interactive exhibits. A highlight is the collection of antique gramophones and phonographs. Piazza della Scala, PHONE: 02/4691249; www.teatroallascala.org; COST: EUR5; OPEN: Daily 9-6; last admission at 5:15; Metro: Duomo or Cordusio. www.teatroallascala.org. Metro: Duomo.