Teatro alla Scala

La Scala opened in 1778 on the site of a church that gave it its name, and it has been the reference point of Italian opera ever since, with first performances by Rossini, Verdi and Puccini heard here before anywhere else. The house is a horseshoe of six tiers in red and gold, with acoustics that reward the cheap seats as much as the boxes. The loggione, the topmost gallery, has a reputation for judging singers without mercy, and it is earned. The season opens on 7 December, the feast day of Milan's patron saint, and that night is a civic occasion as much as a musical one. A museum next door holds costumes, instruments and portraits.

What you actually see

• The auditorium - a horseshoe of six tiers in red and gold.
• The loggione - the top gallery, and the hardest audience in Italy.
• The 7 December opening - the season starts on the city's patron saint's day.
• The theatre museum - costumes, instruments and portraits, with a look into the hall.

When to go

The season runs from December through to the following summer, with opera, ballet and concerts across it. Tickets for the big nights go months ahead, and a limited number of gallery places is sold on the day to people who queue for them. The museum opens most days and lets you look into the hall when no rehearsal is running.

Honest expectations

Gallery seats are cheap for a reason: the view is partial and some places see almost nothing of the stage. Dress is smarter than at most theatres and the interval bar is expensive. If you come only for the museum, a rehearsal can close the view into the hall without notice, which is the single most common disappointment here.

Nearby

The Duomo is five minutes south; the Brera quarter and its gallery are a short walk north.