Teatro alla Scala

Teatro alla Scala, which opened in 1778, is the most celebrated opera house in Italy and a shrine of the operatic art. It hosted the premieres of landmark works by Verdi, Puccini, Rossini and Bellini, and the very word "Scala" is synonymous with operatic excellence. The house famously opens its season each year on 7 December, the feast of Milan’s patron Saint Ambrose, with a gala that is among the most important events in European cultural life. Its orchestra, the Filarmonica della Scala, and its chorus are central to Italian musical tradition. La Scala is also home to a major ballet company and the historic La Scala Theatre Ballet School, giving it a rare double standing in both opera and dance and making it one of the few houses where the Italian schools of both arts are sustained at the highest level.