Ephemera, Festivals and Theatrical Representation / The age of the theatre

An era of fervent construction of theatrical playhouses.

Theatrical spectacles on temporarily constructed stage-like arrangements within great halls were an established element of courtly entertainment well before the growing fascination for theatre led to the rediscovery of permanent playhouses for theatrical performances in the 16th century. These served as prototypes for the great court theatres of the Baroque (comprising a wing of a building or constructed as independent theatre buildings) as well as for public theatres, of which the latter stood out as proud symbols of the culture and affluence of civil societies. Theatrical performance played an important role in the schools run by the Jesuits, which some other religious orders then followed, seeing drama as an excellent educative tool.

NameDynastyDetailsJustification
Teatrino Aldrovandi Mazzacurati, Villa Aldrovandi-Mazzacurati, Bologna1762–1763Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, ItalyAs it was fashionable in the era to invite prominent personalities to perform on stage or to attend as members of the audience, the Marquis Gianfrancesco Aldrovandi Marescotti and his wife Lucrezia were among the actors of the opening performance of this small theatre inside the Aldovrandi villa.
Old Residence Theatre1751–1753Munich historic centre, Munich Residenz, Upper Bavaria, GermanyFollowing the destruction of St. George's Hall, which was used by the Bavarian court as a theatre, Cuvilliés designed a new opera house.
Façade, ground-plan and sections of the opera house in Eszterháza1784Esterházy Palace, Fertőd-Eszterháza, Győr-Moson-Sopron County, HungarySupported by the patronage of Prince Miklós (Nicolaus) II Esterházy, F. J. Haydn served as Kappelmeister (Director of music and performance) and court composer at the Esterházy court.
Puppet theatreTheatre: c. 1770; marionettes: c. 1750Museo di Arte Industriale e Galleria Davia Bargellini
Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
Even though puppet theatres and plays were fashionable during the Baroque-Rococo era, only a few marionettes and dedicated theatres from the period are extant. This precious teatrino is a rare and unique example, therefore. The diagonal perspective of the backdrop and wings show the influence of the Bibienas.
Theatre room1724–1726North wing (3rd floor), Benedictine Abbey of St. Theodor and AlexanderOttobeuren, Bavarian Swabia, Germany
Interior of Teatro dei Vigilanti1814–1815Portoferraio, Isola d'Elba, ItalyThe theatre-loving members of the Accademia dei Fortunati requested a new theatre for the citizens of Portoferraio in 1814 after their theatre in the Villa Mulino, Elba, had been requisitioned as a residence by Napoleon. In exchange, Napoleon selected for them the 17th-century Chiesa della Carmine, which the architect Paolo Bargigli then re-designed as a theatre.
NameDynastyDetailsJustification
The stage curtain of the Teatro dei Vigilanti1814–1815Portoferraio, Isola d'Elba, ItalyThe original Napoleonic stage-curtain, painted by Vincenzo Antonio Revelli, an artist of Napoleonic court, is still in use today following painstaking restoration. Its bucolic image represents Napoleon sitting in an idyllic landscape among shepherds and animals.