Paganini Paradise to debut at the 2026 Festival

Our artistic offering for contemporary audiences continues to grow. After the sold-out Viva Vivaldi, the award-winning immersive format that combines listening and three-dimensional vision, Balich Wonder Studio is returning to the Arena di Verona with a new creation: Paganini Paradise. Superlive Immersive Concert, a celebration of virtuosity, emotions and technology. The show, which will make its world premiere on 18 August, weaves together pieces by Niccolò Paganini with compositions inspired by the theme of Paradise: a place of the sublime, of revelation and of wonder. And the Arena di Verona Orchestra is the star.

Paganini (1782-1840), an unparalleled and incomparable virtuoso, earned in his lifetime a reputation for unbridled genius and fiendish talent: a concert pianist and composer, he wrote 6 concertos, 24 caprices, numerous sonatas and variations. An outstanding talent, acclaimed by all the greats of Europe, so gifted that he must have made a pact with the devil. Or have absorbed the ecstasy of paradise.

“While remaining faithful to the traditions of our festival,” says the General Manager of the Fondazione Arena, Cecilia Gasdia, “we are approach young people with new languages and, through technology, creating precious opportunities to bring people closer to classical music. Children, teenagers, adults and the elderly will be swept away by Paganini's genius but also by the only venue of its kind in the world".

“We are remaining faithful to our revolutionary format of great symphonic music, which allows us to both ‘see’ and listen to music,” explains Marco Balich. “Paganini Paradise turns the image that Paganini has always had on its head: from a mysterious and ‘infernal’ genius to an interpreter with radiant and surprisingly contemporary sensitivity. The show reveals the hidden nuances of his work and creates a journey in which talent is not a gift from the underworld, but an expression of the sublime and a vision of the future of music”.

The show will be performed at the Arena di Verona on Tuesday 18 August 2026, before Viva Vivaldi makes its long-awaited return the following evening. The Four Seasons Immersive Concert, which recently won First Prize in the Music Event and Original Format categories at BEA World Festival, a competition that rewards the world’s finest creative projects. Viva Vivaldi thus garnered two gold medals, from a field of over 470 events from 40 countries.

Two of the most innovative events in the rich programme of the 103rd Arena di Verona Opera Festival, which, if purchased together, will entitle you to a 30% discount.

The 103rd Festival, comprising 50 evenings of opera, ballet and great live music, will open with the new production of Verdi's La Traviata, opening on consecutive evenings on 12 and 13 June, followed by eleven other performances, and will continue with another five operas until 12 September. The queen of the Arena Aida will return in two different stagings: the ‘crystal’ version designed by Stefano Poda, from 19 June to 24 July, and the production imagined by Franco Zeffirelli from 30 July to 10 September. Stefano Poda’s 2025 production of Verdi’s lyrical drama Nabucco will also return to the Arena for 10 performances, between 26 June and 9 September. The production of La Bohème directed by Alfonso Signorini for the 2024 edition of the Festival will also return to the stage for four nights between 3 and 25 July. Celebrating its 100th birthday, Puccini’s masterpiece Turandot will return for six evening performances of Zeffirelli’s magical production (a box-office record holder at the Arena) between 7 August and 11 September, featuring costumes designed by Oscar winner Emi Wada. In addition to the exciting date with Roberto Bolle and friends on 21 July, co-produced with ARTEDANZAsrl, and Paganini Paradise, whose world premiere is slated for 18 August, some of the most beloved musical programmes of recent seasons are back for an encore: the great symphonic-choral organ music in Orff's Carmina Burana will thrill the Arena on 13 August, followed by the Four Seasons on 19 August in Viva Vivaldi, with the Fondazione Arena Orchestra and spectacular three-dimensional and immersive projections created by Balich Wonder Studio. Tickets are already on sale on www.arena.it, on our social channels, in the Arena Ticket Offices and through the Vivaticket circuit, our new ticket service provider.

NEW FOR 2026. The Festival is becoming increasingly accessible, with the creation of a Family Area for the first time. Families with children aged 0 to 14 may purchase tickets for seats in this dedicated section, at a symbolic price of just €2.50 for minors and €68 (instead of €125 or €135) for accompanying adults (up to a maximum of 6 tickets). Adjacent to the stage, the Family Area will have special features and services, including easy entry and exit, spaces for strollers and nearby bathrooms. For Under30s: thanks to Unicredit, €30 tickets will be available for all young people aged under 30. The aim of this initiative is to encourage young people to come and enjoy evening Opera performances and Gala events. The U30 tariff is one of the initiatives of the ‘U Are Invited’ project carried out by Fondazione Arena in collaboration with Unicredit, whose aim is to bring young people closer to the world of opera and support their personal and professional growth.