Aosta · Italy

Roman Theatre

That wall over 20 metres high, its arched windows stacked one above another, is not a ruined church: it is the front of the theatre. It held the structure up and made a display of itself, exactly as the front of an opera house does today. Three thousand people sat within, in a town of a few thousand. Rome did not build theatres for leisure: it built them to declare who was in charge and how life was lived now. The seating fell away towards the stage, the audience entered through side corridors, and places were assigned by rank, the notables at the front and everyone else behind them and higher up. The wall before you survived because it was the most massive part: the rest was dismantled stone by stone over the centuries and reused elsewhere, which is the customary fate of a Roman building in a city that has gone on living. Stand still a moment and fill it with voices.

Go deeper

What was staged here?

Comedies, mime shows, musical acts: a popular repertoire, closer to variety than to Greek tragedy. The audience was noisy, and seats were assigned by rank, with the notables at the front.

Why only the facade?

Because it was the most massive part. The rest, the seating and the stage, was taken apart stone by stone and reused for centuries. The facade was simply too big to be worth pulling down.

Can I go in?

Yes, the site is open to visitors and still hosts performances in summer. Check the seasonal opening times: they change between winter and summer.

Where it is

Teatro Romano, 11100 Aosta · 45.73873, 7.32196 · Open in Maps

Listen where it happened

Part of Memoro, a free audio guide you open in your browser. No app, no account.