FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Sports

World's Oldest Opera House Will Host Lifetime Tribute to...Diego Maradona?

The Teatro di San Carlo in Naples will put on a tribute for Argentinian legend Diego Maradona, who spent seven years with Napoli.

If there's anything more Neopolitan than a Diego Maradona musical set in an 18th century opera house, I'd certainly like to see it. The legendary Argentinian footballer—who plied his trade at Napoli from 1984 to 1991 and, more recently, shamelessly cut down his own grandson—is set to appear on stage at the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples on January 16 for Tre Volte 10 ("Three Times 10"), a theatrical tribute courtesy of rapper Clementino and actor/stand-up comedian Alessandro Siani. The title is a reference to the 30th anniversary of Maradona leading Napoli to their first ever national championship in 1987.

Advertisement

If that description isn't enough to get you to fork over your life savings to an Italian opera scalper, check out this promo from Siani, who penned the tribute.

"For the first time on a theater stage, Maradona will give his testimony of love and freedom," Siani told website Napoli Today, adding that the show will "highlight his truths and his incredible life."

Will there be a choir? You bet your ass there will be a choir. Will Maradona sing? Stay tuned.

Yet there are some in the opera nerd community who feel that Maradona might not be a fitting muse for the oldest active opera house on the planet. Composer Roberto di Simone, who was the artistic director of the famed opera house from 1981 to 1987, complained to La Repubblica, "The San Carlo is the San Carlo. It is a temple of music, what does football have to do with it?" Continuing, he called it "an affront to our culture."

Fortunately, the mayor of Naples, Luigi de Magistris, has expressed his enthusiasm for attending the show, which is reportedly fetching up to €330 a ticket. It's a small price to pay for high art.

[Billboard]