museum of the argentina theatre ( MUSEO DEL TEATRO ARGENTINA)
The
City of Rome bought it in 1869 from the Torlonia
family, the theatre Argentina has always been the
most important theatre in Rome. It dates from the
first half of the Eighteenth century, it was built
in 1731 upon the wish of Duke Giuseppe Sforza
Cesarini from the drawings of Girolamo Theodoli by
Paolo Cappelletti and Nicola Zagaglia, the heads of
the mechanical craftsmen from St Peter's.
It was
entirely built in wood, with the exception of the
boundary walls and the staircase which are in
masonry.
The theatre consisted of a horseshoe shaped
hall for obvious reasons of visibility and
acoustics, with stalls and boxes.
There were forty
rows of benches separated by the backs of other
benches following the shape of the room.
The one
hundred and eighty six boxes were disposed in six
orders bearing a rather simple pictorial decoration
on the window-sills.
These together with the
stuccoes and the gilding of the proscenium and
children bearing festoons painted on the ceiling,
were the simple decoration of the hall. Since then
the theatre has been subject to several
interventions of maintenance and restoration.
The
structural modernization at the end of the 1960 to
ensure the continuing life of the building are of
particular relevance. In 1913. on the occasion of
further refurbishment, by initiative of Professor
Cecilia Pericoli Ridofini the City promoted the
creation of the Museum of the Argentina Theatre.
It
is located in the two halls of the attic, the Museum
aims to document the history of the theatre itself.following an itinerary in three sections.
The
topographical one concerns the history of the
district where the theatre was established.
"Argentina" derives from the Latin name (Argentoratum,
the present Strasbourg) of the city of birth of
Johannes Burckhardt, the famous papal Master of
Ceremonies who had incorporated the neighboring
medieval tower in his residence.
The second section,
the richest, exhibits objects related to the
original theatre, like fragments of the canvass
(Nineteenth-Twentieth century), pieces of wall
decorations coming from the ground floor of the
theatre (Twentieth century), the final cardboard of
the lost curtain and preparatory drawings for the
equally lost curtain of the Apollo theatre by Cesare
Fracassini, a caricature by N. Zagaglia, works by P.
L. Grezzi and the large wheel used in Nineteenth
century to raise the curtain and scenes.
The third
and last section illustrates the life of the theatre
from the opening performance of January 31st 1732
dedicated to the musical drama "Berenice", through
sketches, playbills and photographic documents
relating to the permanent companies of actors of the
theatre (the "Dramatic Company of Rome" and the
"New
Dramatic Company of the Teatro Argentina).
It is
also possible to see an ancient truss in the museum.
This the only left of the eight built in 1731 as
part of the ancient cover of the theatre and saved
from the several restorations to be an example of
the Eighteenth century constructive technique. (mm)
Information and Addresses
Address Largo di Torre Argentina
Visiting Hours Tuesday - Friday from 9.00 am to 2.00
pm and from 1.00 pm to 5.00 pm; Sunday from 9.00 am
to 2.00 pm
Closed Monday
Telephone 06 67106018/7
Price
€ 3,00; concessions € 1,50
For
Tours information
– private guided tours – special entrances, no waiting in
line - VIP services
www.tourinrome.com
www.vaticanmuseuminformation.com
www.vaticanmuseumticket.com
