Theatre

Originally called the New Ducal Theatre, the Teatro Regio in Parma was built at the behest of the Duchess Maria Luigia of Habsburg-Lorraine, wife of Napoleon, who was sent to govern the Duchy of Parma, Piacenza and Guastalla following the Congress of Vienna.  Work began in 1821 on a project by the court architect Nicola Bettoli and the Theatre opened on 16thMay 1829 with Zaira by Vincenzo Bellini with a libretto by Felice Romani. Built in the neo-classical style, the façade is characterized by a colonnade with ionic capitals with a large thermal window above.

Originally the Theatre was destined for various types of spectacle, from opera to dance, from poetic declamation to the most diverse art forms; funambulism, gymnastics, acts with animals, scientific demonstrations, illusionism and displays of ‘curiosities’. Right from its inauguration, the Theatre has born witness and been a protagonist of the crucial changes which affected melodrama during the XIX and XX centuries, from the end of the period of Rossini to the triumph of the Verdi repertoire, to appreciation of the French and German experience, to the extreme evolution in terms of realism of Italian opera with Mascagni, Leoncavallo and Puccini.

Taken from http://www.teatroregioparma.it/en/teatro-regio-2/

Parma Unesco Creative city of Gastronomy

Parma, Unesco Creative City of Gastronomy, is the heart of the Italian Food Valley and one of the destination with the highest number of typical products protected with quality brands in Italy: PDO Parma Ham, PDO Parmigiano Reggiano, PDO Culatello di Zibello, PGI Porcini Mushroom di Borgotaro, PGI Coppa di Parma, CDO wines of the Parma hills and many others. “PARMA City of Gastronomy” is a product club that protects the quality of the typical products of the Parma territory and guarantees authenticity and uniqueness to your travel experience in our city.

http://www.parmacityofgastronomy.it/

Giovannino Guareschi

Italian journalist, humorist, and novelist, famous for his stories of an Italian village where Father Camillo, the stubborn Catholic priest, is constantly in trouble with the local Communist mayor Peppone. These characters  of the Cold War polarization and their ideological disputes are depicted with warm humour. Guareschi’s books gained a huge popularity outside Italy, where they have sold over twenty-three million copies worldwide.

Biography