New videos on LaScalaTv, La Scala’s free streaming platform
Since September, La Scala’s on-demand platform, LaScalaTv, has been free to access, with new titles marking the return of the season – including L’elisir d’amore, a symphonic concert conducted by Daniele Rustioni, and Schoenberg’s monumental Gurre-Lieder under Riccardo Chailly.
LaScalaTv, which became free on 1 September, continues to add new operas, concerts and archival material.
From 20 to 27 September, the platform streams the final performance of Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore, staged by the Accademia Teatro alla Scala. Conducted by Marco Alibrando and directed by Maria Mauti, the production brings together the Accademia’s orchestra, chorus and a cast of current and former students, with Noemi Muschetti (Adina), Zizhao Chen (Nemorino), Chao Liu (Belcore), Misha Kiria (Dulcamara) and Saori Sugiyama (Giannetta) in the principal roles.
On 25 September (available until 2 October), LaScalaTv streams live a symphonic concert conducted by Daniele Rustioni, who made his La Scala debut in 2010 and returns now with an international career behind him – currently principal guest conductor at the Metropolitan Opera, having previously held posts with the Orchestra della Toscana and the Opéra National de Lyon. The programme pairs Brahms and Schumann: Brahms’s Akademische Fest-Ouvertüre and Schicksalslied – the latter featuring the Teatro alla Scala Chorus under Alberto Malazzi – followed by Schumann’s Second Symphony.
From 3 October, the platform adds Schoenberg’s Gurre-Lieder, performed by the Teatro alla Scala Orchestra and Chorus with the Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks under Riccardo Chailly. Staged in 2024 to mark Schoenberg’s 150th birthday, it was La Scala’s first performance of the work since 1973. The cast includes Camilla Nylund (Tove), Andreas Schager (Waldemar), Okka von der Damerau (the Wood Dove), Michael Volle (the Peasant) and Norbert Ernst (Klaus the Fool).
Further ahead, La Scala will also stream live the seventh and final performance of Gounod’s Faust on 8 November (available until 15 November) – the opera’s first outing at La Scala since 2010. The new production – a co-production with the Palau de les Arts in Valencia, the Staatsoper Berlin and the Teatro Real in Madrid – marks the directorial debut of Johannes Erath, whose 2024 production of Ermione won the Premio Abbiati for best opera production. The cast features Marina Rebeka (Marguerite), Alex Esposito (Méphistophélès) and Vittorio Grigolo (Faust).
The move to make LaScalaTv free is part of a wider push by the Fondazione Teatro alla Scala to open up its archive and productions to a broader audience, with the platform’s offering set to expand further.
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.
