La Fenice

The La Fenice theater was founded in 1792 as a space for opera in the Venetian tradition, with a specific focus on contemporary music and talent. Since its beginning, the theater has had an emphasis on the “baroque repertoire” and Venetian works. The idea for the theater first came into being when the Teatro San Benedetto, the leading opera house in Venice, burned to the ground. The La Fenice Theater was built to replace it, becoming the premier site for operatic and contemporary performances in Venice. Most patrons of the theater would approach using waterways. Patrons could approach by gondola and enter the streets alongside La Fenice by pulling their gondolas into an unloading dock specifically placed for the theater. The grand atmosphere of the theater made it a prime location for premier performances, often showcasing works from the bel canto era, including works from composers such as Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti and Verdi. The building has been the result of three separate fires: the first fire that destroyed Teatro San Benedetto in 1774, the second that destroyed La Fenice in 1836, and the third that destroyed La Fenice again in 1996. The name “La Fenice” means “The Phoenix” and is representative of the theater rising from the ashes.
The theater’s layout stayed consistent with the Italian tradition of a mixture of both public and private spaces. Five tiers of “Pepiano” or box seats with 35 boxes per tier which were able to be closed off like a miniature home within the theater, a luxury the Venetian people would never want to give up. In 1793, Andrea Memmo supported the idea of egalitarian and republican boxes, therefore making all of the boxes equal in nature to each other, taking away the mystery and prestige associated with the more expensive, high class boxes. However, as the political climate changed pending the arrival of Napoleon, the idea of egalitarian boxes was scratched and an imperial box was implemented for the emperor. We see here how honored private space was during this era and how the architects, while they may have different ideals themselves, continued to respect the Venetian desire for privacy. After the fire in 1837, the pilasters that upheld the balconies were moved backwards in order to improve visibility. However, this made the boxes more public to the rest of the theater and made their conversations with each other more noticeable, which the architects said was deliberate, making the women more noticeable like decoration for the theater. With each reconstruction of the theater, more private space was granted to the actors performing in the theater, who wanted space to relax and drink coffee separate from the general public.