• Art & Culture
    • Unesco Sites

The mantuan locations in Rigoletto

Between reality and fantasy, a musical itinerary retraces the locations of Verdi's opera set in Mantua in the sixteenth century

Part of the so-called "Popular Trilogy" together with La Traviata and Il Trovatore, Giuseppe Verdi's Rigoletto has never left the top ten most performed operas in the world since 2013.

Its popularity is due to its expert blend of drama, passion, and impossible love, as well as some of the most singable and catchy arias of all time, and the clockwork mechanism that leads to the final climax without pausing for breath.

Based on Victor Hugo's play "Le roi s'amuse", which impressed the Italian musician with the intensity of its characters and the dramatic force of its events, the opera centres on the original figure of the Duke of Mantua's court jester and his unfortunate daughter Gilda, who is secretly in love with the Duke, but whose true identity she does not know.

Staged for the first time on 11 May 1851 and set in 16th-century Mantua, Rigoletto's faithful and realistic depiction of streets, alleys, squares and palaces enabled spectators to immediately recognise themselves in familiar settings and landscapes and to easily identify their location within the Lombard city.

So let's set off on an itinerary which, although based on a literary invention, offers us the opportunity to discover certain places in the city in a new light, all while getting to know, revisit, and be moved by events and atmospheres that have made the history of classical music.

On the same topic

Monuments Bergamo

Bergamo and its province offer monuments of rare beauty. Discover the main monuments to visit
  • Art & Culture
Monuments Bergamo, choose what to see in Lombardy

OPEN WINDOWS

A new project by the Association Tapirulan
  • Art & Culture
OPEN WINDOWS

Discovering the treasures of Mantua

  • Art & Culture
Discovering the treasures of Mantua

School trips

Cremona is the ideal destination for your school trip
  • Art & Culture
School trips

More than just cows

Everything you need to know about the Baronchelli dairy farm. A trip to Lodi to discover what's behind the milk we drink
  • Art & Culture
More than just cows

Lodi, invitation to court

Scenes of court life in the majestic Castle of Sant'Angelo Lodigiano that dominates the plain with an unequaled past
  • Art & Culture
Lodi, invitation to court

The life in a farm

Come and discover the charm of an ancient farm!
  • Art & Culture
The life in a farm

Bergamo, Crespi d'Adda

  • Art & Culture
Villaggio Crespi d'Adda

Autumn Events 2025

  • Art & Culture
Autumn Events 2025

Welcome to Cremona!

Cremona is for everyone
  • Art & Culture
Welcome to Cremona!

Franciacorta Itinerary

The ideal destination for those who love cultural tourism
  • Art & Culture
Franciacorta Itinerary, let's traverse it

Vaprio d adda

Halfway between Bergamo and Milan it is located on the border between the two provinces marked by the river Adda, on the Milanese side
  • Art & Culture
Vaprio d'Adda

Milan in the 1920s: Déco and tradition

  • Art & Culture
Milan in the 1920s: Déco and tradition

A visit to Cerreto Abbey

Cerreto Abbey: a Cistercian jewel of the province of Lodi 
  • Art & Culture
Una visita all’Abbazia del Cerreto

Museums Brescia

Brescia: the ideal destination for those who love art. Countless opportunities to visit exhibitions and to attend cultural events
  • Art & Culture
Museums Brescia, hints on visiting

Open museums in Lombardy: an ode to female talent 

Lombardy’s museums are once again welcoming the public, art lovers, and other visitors with a wealth of exhibitions dedicated to women: artists, works of art, and mythological figures who have inspired exhibitions and shows
  • Art & Culture
Open museums in Lombardy: an ode to female talent 

Visiting Cremona is cheap!

Entry to all the town's museums with a combined cheap ticket
  • Art & Culture
Visiting Cremona is cheap!

Monuments Lecco

From Manzoni to Stoppani: Lecco through the monuments
  • Art & Culture
Monuments Lecco, exploring Lombardy

Pezzotti from Valtellina

Perhaps the most famous artisan product from Valtellina, the “pezzotto” is a very resistant fabric made using scraps of fabric, hand-woven at the loom.
  • Art & Culture
Pezzotti from Valtellina

Pavia Photo Gallery

An area full of attractions and experiences to experience
  • Art & Culture
Pavia from A to Z, art and culinary traditions