The Google Arts & Culture platform joins the La Scala theater in Milan (Italy) in its new virtual collection, which allows you to put yourself in the shoes of an 18th-century Signore without leaving the sofa.
Going up to the main stage, walking through the theater, enjoying the first La Scala opera performed in quarantine or discovering the fashion and props of the great icons, are some of the possibilities offered by this digitization, accessible free of charge through the search engine, as reported by Google in a note.
After closing its doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic, creativity and effort endure, and no less than 90 artists from 5 countries created the first opera performed by La Scala in confinement: Verdi’s aria Simon Boccanegra , which represents “A story of unity and strength”.
Through the Street View tool , which provides panoramic views at ground level from any part of the world, Google Arts & Culture now allows “visiting and walking inside the theater”. It also offers the possibility of exploring the industrial workshop, where you can discover the stage props and fashion created by renowned designers, such as Yves Saint-Laurent or Gianni Versace, and who have worn icons of opera, such as Maria Callas.
The digitization of almost 260 thousand images from the La Scala Theater Archive makes it possible to go through history and get closer to relics, such as Verdi’s first libretto for the opera Nabucco and Puccini’s score of Turandot, in an “unpublished edition painted on hand”.