Turandot is one hundred years old. Zeffirelli's production hits the Arena from 7 August

TURANDOT 
by Giacomo Puccini

7, 14, 21 and 27 August at 9.00 pm
3 and 11 September at 9.00 pm

Nessun dorma! From 7 August, as evening falls, Arena di Verona will echo to the immortal notes of Giacomo Puccini’s final opera. A fairy tale of love and mystery, featuring mythical figures brought to life by the music of the Lucca-born composer in an ancient and fantastical China, where the crowd thrills and prays as one single, monumental character in its own right. For the 2026 Festival, Franco Zeffirelli’s production is returning, featuring costumes by Oscar-winning designer Emi Wada. Conducted first by Andrea Battistoni and then by Francesco Ivan Ciampa, an all-star cast will take to the stage for six unforgettable evenings: Anna Pirozzi and Lise Lindstrom will play Turandot, whilst SeokJong Baek and Yusif Eyvazov will portray the unknown prince who will melt her heart of ice, with the help of Liù, played by Mariangela Sicilia, Maria Agresta and, making her debut in the role, Lisette Oropesa. Also featuring will be Alexander Vinogradov, Michele Pertusi, Gezim Myshketa, the tenors Matteo Macchioni, Saverio Fiore and Carlo Bosi, and Ankhbayar Enkhbold, making his Verona debut. And the Fondazione Arena children’s choir will showcase its young talents. 

Turandot is the final opera by Puccini (1858–1924), inspired by Carlo Gozzi’s 18th-century theatrical fairy tale of the same name. Both librettists, the renowned Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni, hailed from Verona. The composer worked on this original masterpiece for years, without having the time to complete it. Officially, it is not entirely an unfinished work, as the publisher commissioned the finale from the up-and-coming composer Franco Alfano, who reworked Puccini’s drafts and supplemented them with his own music and orchestration. Turandot was first staged at Teatro alla Scala in Milan on 25 April 1926, conducted by the already legendary and deeply moved Arturo Toscanini, who chose to conclude the opera precisely with the death of Liù, the exact point at which Puccini’s work had been interrupted following his death a year and a half earlier. 

Exactly a century has passed since that world premiere, and today Turandot is a cornerstone of the operatic repertoire both at the Arena (having first featured as early as 1928, the first of all Puccini’s works to be staged there) and all over the world. With Puccini’s unerring flair for the theatrical, the gripping plot that tells a timeless fairy tale that balances drama and lighter moments, riddles and declarations of love, ruthless executioners, cheering crowds and stolen kisses. And the composer’s music, while always rich in melody, is at its absolute peak here, in a quest for original sounds, blending ancient Chinese folk themes, daring harmonies and exquisitely refined instrumentation for a majestic, multi-hued orchestra. 

At the Arena, from Friday 7 August, Princess Turandot will be brought to life by soprano Anna Pirozzi for four performances – alternating with the American Lise Lindstrom (21 and 27 August). The heroic and passionate ‘unknown prince’ who will vie for her heart of ice will be played by SeokJong Baek (7 August), followed by Yusif Eyvazov. The role of sweet and courageous Liù will be portrayed by Mariangela Sicilia (7 August), followed by Lisette Oropesa (making her debut in the role, on 14, 21 and 27 August) and Maria Agresta (3 and 11 September). Timur will be played by Alexander Vinogradov (7 August), followed by Michele Pertusi for the remaining performances. Rounding out the cast are Gezim Myshketa, Matteo Macchioni and Saverio Fiore as Ping, Pong and Pang, Carlo Bosi as Emperor Altoum and Ankhbayar Enkhbold – making his Arena debut – as the Mandarin.

Also making its stage debut is the brand-new Fondazione Arena di Verona Children’s Chorus, in its first ‘adult’ engagement following its first year of preparatory and advanced courses. The voices of the Prince of Persia and Turandot’s handmaidens are provided by the 160 singers who make up the Arena Chorus, prepared by Roberto Gabbiani and conducted alongside the full Orchestra by Andrea Battistoni, a Veronese maestro who has previously served as musical director at the Regio in Turin and holds permanent posts in Tokyo and Sydney, for the opening nights, alternating with Francesco Ivan Ciampa (27 August and 11 September), who has previously conducted the opening gala performances. Also on stage are hundreds of mimes, extras and members of the Arena Dance Troupe, coordinated by Geatano Bouy Petrosino with choreography by Maria Grazia Garofoli. 

To date, Turandot has been performed a total of 161 times at the Arena, placing it fourth among the most frequently performed operas in the Festival’s history, only surpassed by Aida, Carmen and Nabucco. 
Moreover, many world-class artists have left their mark in the history of performances of Turandot at Verona’s ancient amphitheatre: Thill, Lauri Volpi, Filippeschi, Corelli, Bonisolli, Martinucci, Domingo, Cura, Licitra, Cigna, Callas, Olivero, Nilsson, Chiara, Ricciarelli, Dimitrova, Marton, Ferrarini, Casolla, Gasdia, Cedolins, Guleghina, Buratto and Netrebko, Gui, Votto, Molinari Pradelli, Patanè and Lombard, to name but a few, in productions designed by Pizzi, Bolognini and Montaldo. 

To best convey the ‘fairytale-era’ atmosphere, with its scenic splendour and skilful handling of the crowds, the Fondazione Arena is reviving the now-classic production, directed and designed by Franco Zeffirelli for the 2010 Festival. This spectacular, cinematic production thus fits seamlessly into the Arena’s glorious tradition, skilfully combining the visual spectacle of the crowd scenes with meticulous attention to detail. Completing the production are the costumes by Emi Wada (an incredibly versatile costume designer, who also worked for Kurosawa and won an Oscar in 1986) and lighting by Paolo Mazzon. 

In the Arena, Puccini’s final notes will be followed by the traditional finale, completed by Franco Alfano in the second, abridged version edited by Arturo Toscanini for the opera’s world premiere. Following the opening performance on 7 August, which is already close to selling out, Turandot will be performed again on 14, 21 and 27 August and on 3 and 11 September at 9.00 pm. Tickets are available on the www.arena.it website, across social media channels, at the Arena ticket offices and via the Vivaticket network.