Must-see entertainment in Italy

San Carlo's opera season runs from November or December to June, with occasional summer performances. Sample prices: a place in the 6th tier (from €35),…

There are few places in the solar system more cinematic than this extraordinary and intimate house of swing and syncopation occupying a restored…

One of Italy's top opera houses, La Fenice stages a rich roster of opera, ballet and classical music. The main opera season runs from January to July and…

An exciting work in progress, this ex-industrial plant near Parco delle Cascine hosts some of the city's edgiest contemporary art events and happenings…

The hub of Rome's thriving cultural scene and home to Rome's world-class Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia (www.santacecilia.it), the…

Close to the waterfront, the 'Old Fort' was constructed to a design by Antonio de Sangallo the Elder in the 16th century, but incorporates an 11th-century…

Catania's premier theatre is named after the city's most famous son, composer Vincenzo Bellini. It's one of Italy's most glorious old theatres, staging…

Having made a name for itself with a program boasting some of the finest names in Italian cinema and theatre, Franco Parenti cemented its role as a…

Ernesto Basile's six-tiered art-nouveau masterpiece is Europe's second-largest opera house and one of Italy's most prestigious, right up there with La…

This quirky 1953 petrol station, designed by Ernesto Rogers (Richard Rogers' cousin) and the BBPR firm, was saved from dereliction in 2008 and turned into…

This unusual cafe/bar and 'nano-theatre' is a production agency by day, but comes alive four nights a week to host film screenings, live music, product…

Naples' football team, Napoli, is the fourth most supported in Italy after Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan, and watching it play in the country's third…

One of the most famous opera stages in the world, La Scala's season runs from early December to July. You can also see theatre, ballet and classical-music…

This is where Placido Domingo made his debut, and the annual opera season from late-June to late-August still draws the world's top names.

This risk-taking little repertory theatre was opened in 1947 by Paolo Grassi and theatre director Giorgio Strehler, who then embarked on a nationwide…

This trailblazing theatre with seating for 960 people was designed by Marco Zanuso in 1998 to address the size constraints of the original Piccolo Teatro…

Abandoned after WWII, the Cinema Massimo was transformed in 1999 into the state-of-the-art home of Milan's legendary Giuseppe Verde Symphonic Orchestra…

Naples' premier classical-music association organises chamber-music concerts in venues that include the Museo Diocesano di Napoli. Local talent mixes it…

Be it an exhibition celebrating 50 years of the moon boot, a Pitti Immagine fashion show, lavish food and wine tastings, DJ sets or a festival dedicated…

Sold-out performances can sometimes be watched free on live TV in the adjoining Teatro Piccolo Regio, where Puccini premiered La Bohème in 1896, and it's…