The great Italian actor Vittorio Gassman presented the reopening of the Teatro Municipale in 1990, with the performance “Brindisi per un teatro” (Toast to a theatre). The history of this theatre has been characterised by a series of events since it was built in 1785, to a design by Abbot Agostino Vitoli, to be opened only six years later in 1791. Closed during the French occupation, it was reopened in 1840, after the interior had been renovated, with Donizetti’s opera “Beatrice di Tenda”. In 1861 the Società dei Nobili sold it to the Municipality of Casale, but following a series of difficulties in the ensuing years, it was closed. During the last World War it was used as a store and then permanently closed until recent restoration work brought it back to life. A real jewel of stuccoes, gilding and velvet, with four circles and gods, it now hosts theatrical performances, dance and music, as well as photography exhibitions.
