Teatro San Ferdinando
Teatro San Ferdinando is a theatre in Naples, Italy. It is named after King Ferdinand I of Naples. Located near Ponte Nuovo, it is to the southeast of the Teatro Totò in the western part of the neighborhood of Arenaccia. Built in the late eighteenth century, the seats are arranged in four box tiers, and the pit. It is most associated with Eduardo De Filippo and the productions of the 1950s under his direction. Closed in the 1980s and reopened in 2007, the San Fernando is managed by the Teatro Stabile of Naples. History Early years Built during the period of 1788 to 1790, it opened with the Domenico Cimarosa opera, Il falegname ("The Carpenter"). La Villana Riconosciuta, another of Cimarosa's operas, had debuted in Naples in 1783 at the Teatro del Fondo, and opened the Teatro San Ferdinando season in 1791. From the beginning, the theatre had problems, undergoing different administrations, soon becoming a venue for smaller companies and for an aristocratic audience. Between 1814 and 1818, a new building was constructed for the theatre, situated on the perimeter walls of a desecrated church. By 1829, it was rarely open. The Pulcinella actor Antonio Petito first performed here in 1831; his great-grandson, Enzo Petito, performed at this theatre many years later. On November 30, 1843, Marzio Gaetano Carafa, principle of Colubrano, sold the theatre to Enrico del Prete, who then sublet it to Adamo Alberti (1809–1885), comedian and impresario of the Teatro dei Fiorentini. While Giovanna d'Arco was performed at the San Ferdinando in early 1855;. an 1855 handbook included criticism of the theatre, noting its amateur performances. In 1886, it debuted the actor Federico Stella (1842–1927) taking the stage in Crescenzo Di Maio. The typographer Luigi Bartolomeo and the impresario Salvatore Golia bought a part of the theatre. In the 1889-1890 season, the theatre also welcomed the success of Eduardo Scarpetta. Golia and his wife Raffaella Salvatore Bartolomeo (sister of Louis), became the sole owners of the theatre, and he entrusted the management to his son Giuseppe. In 1896, the theatre put on a performance of San Francisco. Later years Salvatore Di Giacomo's O mese mariano debuted at the San Ferdinando on 24 January 1900. In the 1930s, Golia, attempting to manage debt, rented the building. The theatre was transformed into "Cinema Teatro Principe" until September 3, 1943 when American and German bombs destroyed it almost completely. Golia sold the ruins to De Filippo on February 25, 1948, who invested in the reconstruction of the theatre with his earnings from his movies, and with bank loans, forming his Il Teatro di Eduardo. Following the purchase, the SIT Società Imprese Teatrali ran "Il Teatro di Eduardo" and a second company, "La Scarpettiana". In 1954, a new company, "San Ferdinando Film", ran a six show series of the Il Teatro di Eduardo and De Filippo continued to work in cinema to pay for theatre restoration. One of the shows, Palummella zompa e vola (Palummella Leaps and Flies) was an Antonio