The current municipal theater, built in the mid-19th century, is only the latest example of at least three theater buildings constructed in Fontanellato since the last quarter of the 17th century. The oldest one on record was erected for private use by Alessandro III, Count of Sanvitale, opposite the Fortress in 1678. As recounted in the letters of Academician Carlo Giuseppe Fontana, Alessandro III was himself the designer, director of the works, and inventor of the stage machinery. The theater, with a very elongated horseshoe-shaped floor plan, had three tiers with eleven boxes and one royal box on both the first and second tiers; while the third tier consisted of galleries. It is said that the stalls could accommodate 1,200 seats; this figure seems somewhat unrealistic but it must be remembered that in the past, theater spaces were packed with spectators who took seats anywhere they could. The theater featured a large stage almost equal in length to the stalls and an orchestra pit under the proscenium. Behind the scenes, two rooms and nine dressing rooms with independent service stairs ensured every convenience for the actors. The young painter Felice Boselli from Piacenza (1650-1731) was commissioned to decorate the theater and all the stage sets. The Sanvitale family crests adorned the balustrades of the third tier and the proscenium, which was also decorated with mottos and portraits of the most famous authors. Scenes from Ovid’s fables decorated the royal boxes in chiaroscuro, and the muses of Architecture and Fame presided over the ceiling. The facade was decorated with an octagonal terracotta pillar portico. “The theater was demolished towards the end of the 18th century by Jacopo Sanvitale, distinguished botanist, to make way for the neoclassical greenhouses still existing today and incorporated into the Gandini estate” (…) Today, only some painted fragments are preserved in the Fortress museum from the ancient theater. It is currently known that the 18th-century theater was destroyed by fire (oral testimony) and that the present theater was desired by the citizens to replace the great loss. A correspondence still preserved today testifies that within only two years, from 1855 to 1857, the municipality of Fontanellato agreed with Count Luigi Sanvitale for a plot of land to be donated to the citizens in order to build a new theater. In return, the count could freely choose a box of perpetual ownership for the Sanvitale family. The project was designed by architect Pier Luigi Montecchini with great economy: on the rectangular floor stalls, two tiers of galleries overlook only three central boxes “reserved one for municipal authorities, one for the Sanvitale families, and the third to be freely assigned.” (but compared to the original project, three central boxes were also added on the second tier in the final construction). Since the ceiling was very low, it was initially thought to illuminate the theater with lanterns placed on the balustrades so as not to obstruct the view of the spectators, but later it is known that an “astrolampo” with eight oil lamps was installed. In 1859 the project was blocked by the Provincial Deputation which did not consider it appropriate since “opening a theater in a small town is neither necessary nor, for some reasons, even useful” (…p.) Four years later the approval arrived and in 1864 construction began, continuing under the direction of the architect Pancrazio Soncini of Parma who completed the building in 1866. The theater facade has three entrances and three openings, with the central one topped by a pediment. The city coat of arms that probably adorned the inscription “Teatro comunale,” still existing, has been lost. From the rectangular foyer, one can access the box office, stalls, and galleries. On the first floor, there is a café with original furniture. The galleries rest on the floor of the stalls supported by ten small columns with terracotta capitals. Of Angelo Biolchini’s decorations, only the frieze running along the balustrades remains, while the ceiling decoration was covered towards the late 1930s. The proscenium arch and the clock depicted in the original project have disappeared, while the curtain, decorated with a faux drapery, although in poor condition, is still preserved rolled up on the grid. The stage is equipped with backstage and understage areas. There is a 1949 renovation plan in which the theater would have been transformed into a cinema if the mayor had not intervened in time. In 1965 some interior finishes were restored. (Caterina Spada)
Information on Fontanellato Municipal Theater
Piazza G. Verdi,
43012 Fontanellato (Parma)
Source: MIBACT
