Fondazione Arena di Verona

Fondazione Arena di Verona was born on 10th August 1913, with the first performance of Aida commissioned by Veronese tenor Giovanni Zenatello and theatre impresario Ottone Rovato to commemorate the centenary of Giuseppe Verdi's birth. For over a hundred years (except for two brief interruptions during the great wars and the pandemic), every summer, the Roman amphitheatre is transformed into the world's largest open-air opera house. The Fondazione's current Founding Members are the Italian State, the Ministry of Culture, the Veneto Region, the Municipality of Verona, the Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Crafts and Agriculture of Verona and Cattolica Assicurazioni. In the past, the Province of Verona, Fondazione Cariverona, the Banca Popolare di Verona and the Accademia Filarmonica di Verona.