Donizetti Night

Donizetti Night

A cultural revolution has begun in Bergamo, under the banner of Gaetano Donizetti and the value he placed on his city’s identity. As part of this journey, the Donizetti festival’s artistic director Francesco Micheli – opera director and TV star on Rai1 and Sky – conceived several initiatives geared to turning opera from an elite form of entertainment into a genuine street phenomenon, popular and with broad appeal. One of these is “Donizetti Night”.

The aim of “Donizetti Night” is to ignite the interest of tourists and the pride of the local citizens, traders and artists in the figure of Gaetano Donizetti, one of the world’s top five composers in terms of international performances.

Enjoying Donizetti’s music in his home town is an experience no other place can offer, and on “Donizetti Night” all the streets around the theatre are enlivened by music, words, images and colours by and about Bergamo’s own composer.
From afternoon to late at night, Bergamo’s halls, squares and monuments host almost 100 events, including concerts, shows, screenings and theatre, involving more than 500 performers.

“Once a year we like the idea”, says artistic director Francesco Micheli, “that the whole of Bergamo takes to the streets to celebrate the greatness of Donizetti, enjoy the genius and the legacy of a composer who gained – and continues to gain – mass acclaim, and who now should continue to charm the residents of Bergamo”.

The last edition of the event attracted more than 50,000 spectators.