Construction began in 1718 and was completed in 1723: it was promoted by some noble Perugians who felt the need for a performance venue more suitable and spacious than the small theaters already existing in the city. It was originally called the “Theatre of the Noble Academy of the Casino,” entirely built of wood, with four tiers of boxes and a rectangular floor plan, which soon proved unsuitable for the new demands of melodrama and comedy. The Academy therefore decided to demolish it (1765) and entrusted the reconstruction to architect Pietro Carattoli. The new layout, inspired by the Teatro Argentina in Rome, featured a horseshoe shape, a masonry structure, and 82 boxes distributed over 4 tiers (the lowest supported by small columns preceded by a balustrade, richly decorated). The front of the boxes was adorned with stucco cameos by Carlo Spiridione Mariotti. The theater’s name derives from the beautiful bird sacred to Juno, the goddess who triumphs on the curtain painted by the Anconitan Francesco Appiani in 1772. The ceiling decoration dates back to 1814, as well as the replacement of the already worn curtain with a depiction of the “Rebuilding of Perugia ordered by Augustus,” both works by the Roman Gaspare Coccia. In 1856, significant restoration works were undertaken including the reconstruction of the roof and vault, the application of pipe chambers also to the aisles of the fourth and fifth orders, the latter transformed into a gallery. The new decoration of the entire theater and curtain was entrusted to painter Nicola Benvenuti.
Information about Teatro del Pavone
Piazza Repubblica,
06121 Perugia (Perugia)
075 5728153
teatropavone@virgilio.it
https://www.teatrodelpavone.it
Source: MIBACT
