The Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza was Andrea Palladio's final work. The Accademia Olimpica began building it in 1580 inside a former fortress; Palladio died that August, and his son Silla and Vincenzo Scamozzi completed the project. It opened on 3 March 1585 with Sophocles' Oedipus Rex. Palladio brought the ancient Roman theatre indoors, flattening the seating into an ellipse and adding a richly decorated scaenae frons of wood and stucco. Scamozzi's trompe-l'œil scenery depicts seven streets of Thebes and is the oldest surviving stage set in existence. Since 1994 the theatre has been part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. For conservation reasons it seats only 470 and is used mainly in spring and autumn for classical drama and concerts.
The Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, completed in 1585 by Andrea Palladio, is the oldest preserved roofed theatre in the world — the famous wooden stage construction with its perspective street scenery is a Renaissance marvel.
At a glance
- Type
- Theatre
- Location
- Vicenza, Italy
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