Milan’s La Scala opera house to reopen with Requiem in virus-devastated region

Italy La Scala

The famed La Scala opera house announced an autumn programme of concerts and ballets aimed as a signal of confidence that European cultural life can resume in full following the coronavirus lockdowns, and in support of artists who were left out of work during the shutdowns.

La Scala’s musical director, Riccardo Chailly, will launch the season on September 4 by conducting Verdi’s Requiem in Milan’s Duomo dedicated to victims of the coronavirus, followed by dates in Bergamo and Brescia, in solidarity with two of the hardest-hit provinces in the Lombardy region that has accounted for nearly half of Italy’s dead and nearly 40% of all confirmed infections.