Venice opera, theatres and concerts: where to go and how to buy tickets

A night at the theatre in Venice can mean three very different things. Opera at La Fenice, in a gilded auditorium rebuilt after two fires, with an international programme and prices that rise with the quality of the seat. A Vivaldi concert in a church or a scuola grande: an hour and a quarter of The Four Seasons from about €30, almost every evening of the year. Or something only Venice does, like Musica a Palazzo, where you follow an opera from room to room of a palace on the Grand Canal.

This guide compares the theatres, concerts and shows, with official prices and partner prices side by side, and tells you how to buy, when to arrive and what to pack so you aren’t turned away at the door.

Venice opera, theatres and concerts compared

Prices marked official come from the theatres’ and ensembles’ own sites; Tiqets prices are the starting prices shown on the partner. Both can change.

Teatro La Fenice: opera and theatre visits

La Fenice is the reason many music lovers come to Venice. Verdi’s Rigoletto and La traviata had their premières here; the theatre burned in 1836 and again in 1996, and reopened in 2003 rebuilt “as it was, where it was”. Today it alternates opera, ballet and symphonic concerts, and every year it hosts the New Year’s Concert.

There are two ways in. By day, the audio-guided visit: normally every day 9:30–18:00, except during rehearsals and shows, taking in the foyer, the auditorium, the Royal Box, the Apollonian Rooms and the Maria Callas exhibition. By night, a performance, with tickets bought on the theatre’s website, at the Campo San Fantin box office or at Venezia Unica offices. Prices, the differences between channels and house rules are in our La Fenice guide.

Teatro Malibran and Teatro Goldoni

Teatro Malibran stands on Campiello del Teatro in Cannaregio, a few minutes’ walk from Rialto. It opened during the Carnival of 1678 as the Teatro di San Giovanni Grisostomo, on the site of Ca’ Milion, the house of Marco Polo’s family. Today it is run by the Fondazione Teatro La Fenice, which stages part of its opera, ballet and symphonic season there: tickets, sales channels and dress code are the same as at La Fenice. The hall is smaller and less photographed, and seats are sometimes easier to find.

Teatro Goldoni (San Marco 4650/B, near Rialto) was built by the Vendramin family in 1622 as the Teatro San Luca and took Carlo Goldoni’s name in 1875. The Teatro Stabile del Veneto describes it as the oldest theatre in Venice still in use; it reopened in 1979 after 32 years of closure. It stages drama, almost always in Italian: a lovely evening if you understand the language, less so if you don’t. Box office: +39 041 2402011.

Vivaldi concerts and baroque music

Antonio Vivaldi was Venetian, and The Four Seasons has become the city’s evening soundtrack. Several ensembles play almost every night; the venue, the style and the price vary.

I Musici Veneziani play at the Scuola Grande di San Teodoro on Campo San Salvador, a couple of minutes from Rialto, in 18th-century costume. Concerts start at 20:30 and doors open at 20:00. The official site divides the hall into three sections: VIP (rows 1–3), Category A (rows 4–12) and Category B (rows 13–22), priced from €30 to €60, with reductions for under-18s, students up to 27, groups of 15 or more and military personnel. Besides The Four Seasons there are baroque programmes, opera arias, a Three Tenors evening and special Carnival and New Year concerts.

I Virtuosi Italiani perform The Four Seasons in the church of the Pietà on Riva degli Schiavoni, known as “Vivaldi’s church”: the composer taught for decades at the Ospedale della Pietà. The church you see today was rebuilt after his death, but the link with his orchestra of pupils is genuine. On Tiqets the concert lasts 1 hour 10 minutes and starts at €32, rated 4.8 from almost 600 reviews.

Interpreti Veneziani play in the church of San Vidal, between Campo Santo Stefano and the Accademia bridge, without costumes and with a wider baroque repertoire. Their site says they play “almost every evening”; according to unofficial sources concerts start at 21:00 and a full ticket is around €30. Tickets are also sold at the Music Museum in San Maurizio, which displays instruments from their collection.

How to choose: for costumes and a show atmosphere, I Musici Veneziani; if the place matters to you, the Pietà; if you care more about the sound than the spectacle, San Vidal. For I Musici Veneziani, the official price of the cheapest section (€30) is below Tiqets’ (€35); the partner is worth it if you want to pay ahead with cancellation up to the date and a ticket on your phone.

Musica a Palazzo: opera that moves from room to room

At Palazzo Barbarigo Minotto, a Gothic palace on the Grand Canal next to the Santa Maria del Giglio waterbus stop (line 1), the opera has no stage. Singers and musicians perform in the rooms of the piano nobile and each act takes place in a different room: the audience moves with them and sits a few metres from the action. The programme includes La Traviata, The Barber of Seville and Rigoletto.

On Tiqets the evening costs €95, lasts about two hours and includes a glass of prosecco at the first interval; it is rated 4.7. Seats are few by definition, so book a few days ahead. The official site doesn’t show the price on its home page: compare available dates on both channels before you buy.

Church concerts and Carnival

Beyond the resident ensembles, many churches host occasional concerts, choirs and organ series, especially in spring, at Christmas and around Easter. Look for notices on church doors and posters in the campi. For visiting the churches by day, see our Venice churches guide.

At Carnival the whole city becomes a stage: water parades, the Festa delle Marie, the Flight of the Angel from the bell tower, mask contests in St Mark’s Square and private balls in palaces. Many ensembles add themed concerts. Dates, events and tips are on our Venice Carnival page.

How to buy tickets

• La Fenice and Malibran: teatrolafenice.it (+10% booking fee), the Campo San Fantin box office daily 10:00–17:00, Venezia Unica offices, the call centre on +39 041 2722699 (fee up to €10). One hour before the show, unsold seats may go on sale at a last-minute price.
• Goldoni: the theatre box office (+39 041 2402011) and the Teatro Stabile del Veneto’s channels.
• Baroque concerts: directly from the ensembles, often with a ticket desk at the door on the night, or on Tiqets with a mobile ticket.
• Musica a Palazzo: the official site or Tiqets.

In peak months and at weekends the smaller concerts fill up. At La Fenice, premières and the best-known operas sell out early: if your date is fixed, buy as soon as sales open.

What to wear

La Fenice publishes precise rules, which also apply at the Malibran: black tie is recommended on the season’s opening night; a dark suit or jacket and tie at other premières; shirt and jeans are accepted on other evenings; matinées are smart-casual. Anyone arriving in shorts or a sleeveless top is refused entry, with no refund. Church concerts have no written code, but neat clothes are the norm. In winter churches can be cold: keep your coat to hand.

Practical tips

• Length: a Vivaldi concert lasts 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, Musica a Palazzo about 2 hours, an opera at La Fenice up to 3 hours with intervals.
• Late arrival: at La Fenice latecomers are only seated at the interval. Remember that many alleys flood when the tide goes above 100 cm.
• Getting back: waterbuses run less often after the show. If you’re staying far away, you can book a water taxi in advance.
• Children: under-4s are not admitted at La Fenice; a short concert is the easiest choice for families.
• St Mark’s Square is a few minutes from almost every venue: see our St Mark’s Square guide for a drink before the show.