It’s like Squid Game – singers suffer under heavy costumes in Verona’s Arena
“It’s like Squid Game,” said a trade union representative, referencing Netflix’s South Korean dystopian survival thriller to describe the situation at the Arena di Verona.
Singers and dancers are suffering under the heavy opera costumes with temperatures still over 30°C when the operas start at 10pm, with perceived temperatures even higher due to the marble of the amphitheatre heating up throughout the day.
“Biker boots, full trousers, and tunics. In the third act, we wear a rigid plastic grille with LED lights, which weighs about 10 kilos,” said a chorus member. “It cuts into my shoulders, so I had to put a towel underneath. And in the meantime, I also have to sing, with helmets, hoods, visors and a plastic cape. It’s inhumane.” Another singer says, “The stage is hot, the costumes are so rigid that they force you to sing with your chin up. The plastic armour touches our necks.”
During Nabucco on Saturday 28 June, four members of the chorus needed medical assistance, and during Aida on Sunday 29 June a member of the chorus fainted while performing and two others needed medical care.
The costumes for last year’s new high-tech Aida by director and designer Stefano Poda had already sounded alarm bells: “The length, heaviness and lack of breathability of the fabrics, together with the prohibitive climatic conditions recorded inside the amphitheatre, have made the work of everyone, both artistic and technical, a real hell,” explained a union representative. “It is no coincidence that last year several people fell ill during the shows due to the excessive heaviness of the costumes and the high temperatures, with peaks of over 45°C.”
The same director was assigned to create a new production to open the current season, and his plastic and metal Nabucco opened last month. The unions say, “As soon as we became aware of the new production of Nabucco for the 2025 festival, we insistently asked to pay particular attention to the fabrics to be used for the costumes to avoid the problems that emerged with the production of Aida last year.”
The requests do not seem to have altered the design concept with costumes weighing over 11kg and bodices made of plastic being worn.
The Arena di Verona has now approached a specialised company in Milan to monitor the thermal stress of the workers during daytime operations such as set changes and rehearsals, as well as the evening performances. “A preliminary analysis has already been conducted on the costumes of three operas: Aida, Nabucco and Carmen,” said Fondazione Arena. “For the creation of the new Nabucco costumes, all stages of production were controlled, imposing criteria for the use of natural fibres, such as linen and cotton, and technical sports materials.
“The second phase will start on 6 July, to monitor the physiological parameters of a sample of workers. These measurements will take place by recording the heart rate of people in the chorus, the team of extras and dancers, with monitors to be worn on the arm during performances, under the costume, for the entire performance.”
Graham Spicer, aka ‘Gramilano’, is a writer, director and photographer based in Milan. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. His articles have appeared in various publications from Woman’s Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the Danza in Italia column for Dancing Times magazine. Graham was the historical advisor on Codice Carla, the 2023 documentary on Italian ballerina Carla Fracci.
Graham also works as a dance photographer, and his photos have appeared in many books, theatre programmes, and magazines, including Dancing Times, Dance Spirit and Ballet2000, as well as all the major Italian newspapers.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
