The mobilization of musicians continues: the traditional greeting with the mayor and the superintendent has been missed
The warmth of the audience floods the Teatro La Fenice with ten minutes of applause, but behind the festively decorated stage the cold still reigns. For the first time, the traditional greeting from the superintendent and mayor to the Choir and Orchestra was skipped, as happened every year before the start of the New Year’s Concert.
A clear sign of tension which the mayor however justified by saying that there was no time because he had to speak with the undersecretary of Culture Gianmarco Mazzi, who was also present in the Royal Box with Federico Mollicone (FdI), president of the Chamber’s Culture Commission and other authorities such as the prefect Darco Pellos and the police commissioner Gaetano Bonaccorso. The successful New Year’s Concert took place in a festive atmosphere with the stage decorated with flowers, red berries and golden branches and an audience that applauded several times. A great debut for the conductor Michele Mariottiat its premiere in Venice, with the silent protest pin in plain sight, pinned to his tailcoat. Before the start, some musicians have indeed delivered to the audience the pin of dissent, symbol of the unity of the Choir Orchestra which since the end of September have been asking for the revocation of the nomination of Beatrice Venezi as musical director of the Fenice as her professional profile is not considered adequate and the resignation of the superintendent Nicola Colabianchi.
However, the leaders – from the mayor Luigi Brugnaro to the superintendent Nicola Colabianchi via Mollicone – have reiterated their intention to continue. Brugnaro, relaunching the idea of a meeting between Choir and Orchestra and Venezi, said that he wants to give confidence to young people and that the concert was beautiful. Mollicone recalled that this government was the one that did the most for opera, also wearing the pin: “I wear it because I read that it is also in defense of La Fenice and I want to interpret it in this way, demonstrating by wearing it that there is no closure, but that there is openness to dialogue in comparison but that all roles must be respected and certainly also that of the director of Venice”.
January 1, 2026 (changed January 1, 2026 | 3:58 pm)
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