Festival Verdi di Parma Records Record Attendance and Revenue in 2016

The Festival Verdi di Parma, held annually in October, has rebounded from a period of financial and artistic crisis since 2016. The 2016 edition achieved record attendance of 24,269 spectators, an 80.99% increase from 2014 and 50.59% from 2015, plus over 2,000 attendees at free events. Total revenue reached €1,356,926, up 95.07% from 2014 and 66.32% from 2015. Nearly all tickets for the four operas were sold, with 9,731 tickets sold to non-local audiences (2,851 Italian, 6,880 foreign). The 2017 festival, running until October 22, opened with strong presales of €1 million before its September 28 start, with additional funding from a law recognizing the festival as internationally significant. The 2017 program includes new productions of Jérusalem, La Traviata, Stiffelio, and Falstaff, plus concerts and Verdi Off events for younger audiences. The 2018 lineup was announced: Macbeth, Le Trouvère, Un giorno di Regno, and Attila, all new productions. The opening opera Jérusalem, a grand opéra, is a joint production with Opéra de Monte Carlo, directed by Hugo de Ana with sets and costumes, featuring tenor Ramón Vargas, soprano Annick Massis, and bass Michele Pertusi. Other productions include Fidelio at Teatro Farnese directed by Graham Vick, a youth-oriented La Traviata at Teatro Verdi di Busseto, and a contemporary Falstaff directed by Jacopo Spirei at Teatro Regio.