Opera and Aperitif at Terrazza Borromini
Picture this: You are standing on the lavish terrace of an Italian palace, drink in hand, watching the spring sun set behind the Eternal City’s inimitable skyline. A soprano and a tenor, accompanied by a grand piano, take you through a selection of the greatest love arias and duets in the history of Italian opera. This is what awaits you at the concert Opera and Aperitif at Terrazza Borromini in Rome’s celebrated Palazzo Pamphilj. After the musical programme is over, you are also invited to take a guided tour of the palace’s movie-famous terrace La Grande Bellezza, a rare and treasured opportunity indeed!
There is something quintessentially Italian about enjoying a high-quality musical performance while simultaneously indulging your appetite. It is a great illustration of the Roman way of life, taking everything life has to offer and living the moment to the full. To get you into that mood, the concert Opera and Aperitif at Terrazza Borromini presents a selection of the most vivacious and attractive melodies by opera heavyweights such as Giacomo Puccini, Ruggero Leoncavallo, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Giuseppe Verdi. Their inspired music will ring through the open air of the historic terrace on the Pamphilj Palace in the heart of Rome, just off Piazza Navona.
Trademark soprano and tenor arias and duets such as ‘E lucevan le stelle’ and ‘Vissi d’arte’ (Tosca), ‘La donna è mobile’ (Rigoletto), and ‘Batti batti, o bel Masetto’ (Don Giovanni) find new life in a sparse piano arrangement and let the power and range of the vocal melodies shine with new light. Raising your glass as Verdi’s timeless ‘Libiamo nei lieti calici’ soars over Piazza Navona is certainly a memory of a lifetime.
The concert Opera and Aperitif on Terrazza Borromini begins at 17:45 pm. The aperitivo includes prosecco, red wine and non-alcoholic beverages accompanied by a selection of cheeses with honey and marmalade, and Italian salami. The aperitif and musical programme last for about 50 minutes, during which you can feast upon the delicacies, the exquisite operatic selection and the impressive view to the Pantheon, St Peter’s Basilica, Trinità dei Monti, and Castel Sant’Angelo.
After the aperitif and concert wrap up, you can join the 20-minute guided tour of the palace’s terrace La Grande Bellezza, or ‘The Great Beauty’, one of the real-life sets of the Oscar-winning film. So much Roman culture in one event, curated just for you!