A night out at the theatre

Twenty-eight operas, thirty-four concerts, thirty evenings of ballet, not to mention numerous cultural conferences, meetings and music and dance shows produced by local schools. The 2005-2006 season of the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino starts on September 25th and will continue well into spring, with its final show scheduled for April 7th.  Zubin Mehta is one of the season’s most noteworthy acts along with the presence of maestro Riccardo Muti  during Mozart’s Anniversary Special. Much awaited is the Italian debut of orchestra director Carlo Ponti Jr. (Sofia Loren’s son), and Andrea Boccelli’s performance of Marco Tutino’s Il Canto della Pace, Song of Peace, based on lyrics by Pope Wojtyla. From September 24th to October 4th opera lovers can enjoy the revolutionary opera written by composer Giuseppe Verdi during his younger years, I lombardi della prima crociata, The Lombards of the First Crusade.