Venice's storied La Fenice opera house protests appointment of musical director with ties to Meloni

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VENICE, Italy (AP) — The storied Venetian opera house La Fenice is locked in a dispute with its workers over the appointment of a young and telegenic music director with ties to Premier Giorgia Meloni but none with the musicians with whom she has been hired to construct the theater’s musical future.

La Fenice’s general manager, Nicola Colabianchi, who joined the theater in March, has defended his choice of 35-year-old Beatrice Venezi, saying her youthful energy will bring a new audience to the theater where Giuseppe Verdi premiered “Rigoletto’’ and “La Traviata’’ more than 170 years ago.

“She’s young and dynamic, she’s already written several books and she’s conducted many orchestras. She’s a person who attracts a great deal of media attention. So all of this will only bring attention to the theater and the theater’s future,″ Colabianchi said in an interview. “We can’t think the theater can survive with 80-year-old season ticket holders.’’

In the month and a half since La Fenice announced Venezi’s appointment, effective next October, striking workers forced the cancellation of an opera premiere and unions have called for Colabianchi’s resignation.

On Monday, several hundred musicians, singers and backstage hands marched through Venice with workers from other Italian opera houses, including Milan’s Teatro alla Scala, Verona’s Arena and Turin’s Regio Teatro, along with season-ticket holders and music students concerned about the theater’s independence.

Italy’s 14 opera theaters are publicly funded, and protesters expressed concern the way the Venezi appointment was handled indicated moves by the government in Rome to exert more control not only over artistic directors but also over the repertoire.

Critics say Venezi doesn’t have the requisite experience for a theater of La Fenice’s profile, where famed conductors Arturo Toscanini, Claudio Abbado and Riccardo Muti have lifted their batons. They also suggest the choice was influenced by Venezi’s ties to Meloni and her far-right Brothers of Italy party.

Venezi has not publicly commented on the La Fenice dispute, and canceled a public appearance to avoid polemics.

She is the daughter of a prominent member of Forza Nuova, another hard-right party, and has identified with the right’s conservative values. However, she told the daily La Stampa in 2023 that she was "offended when they call me a little fascist."

La Fenice’s unions say they are not contesting Venezi’s youth, gender or political leanings, but the lack of consultations with the musicians whom she must lead. They note that Colabianchi had pledged an open process just days before Venezi’s appointment was announced.

The musical director “gives the theater its musical imprint,” said Paolo Bertoldo, a percussionist in La Fenice’s orchestra and a union leader.

“When you choose a person for this role. you normally choose someone who can construct a role with the artistic crew. If you soccer coach doesn’t work well with the players, the team won’t have results."

La Fenice’s unions have asked Colabianchi to revoke Venezi’s appointment, and relaunch the selection process, allowing the musicians time to work with and become familiar with any candidates, Venezi included. They also demanded Colabianchi’s resignation.

Colabianchi, for his part, has apologized for hiring Venezi without more consultations, but he remains firm in his choice.

“I chose Beatrice Venezi because I had invited her, while I was the general manager in Caglieri, for three separate operas, and she was a huge success,” Colabianchi said, adding she has a broad repertoire of more than 50 operas. “She is young, and we need to promote the young; she is a woman, and we need to promote women.”

He said there was no question of his resigning and that he would bring Venezi to the theater as soon as the protests against her appointment cease. Her first appointment to conduct with the full orchestra would be in July, for a concert in St. Mark’s Square, though others could be added earlier, Colabianchi said.

“There is lots of time to get to know each other, to verify. You can’t create polemics against someone without knowing them, just because of what you hear,’’ Colabianchi said.