Theatres for diverse musical and dramatic presentations began to open in Naples

Naples

Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, in the mid-16th century as part of the general Spanish cultural and political expansion into the kingdom of Naples

Kingdom of Naples

The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...

, which had just become a vicerealm of Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

. None of the early theaters still function as such, having been replaced by later facilities in the mid-18th century; however, in many cases, the buildings still stand and have been converted to other uses. These theaters include:

La Commedia

Built around 1550, the theater was the professional home to acting troupes from Spain "playing the provinces," and it provided a stage for the improvised antics of the masked and costumed figures in the then innovative Italian Commedia dell'arte

Commedia dell'arte

Commedia dell'arte is a form of theatre characterized by masked "types" which began in Italy in the 16th century, and was responsible for the advent of the actress and improvised performances based on sketches or scenarios. The closest translation of the name is "comedy of craft"; it is shortened...

. The theater was torn down and replaced by a church that still stands, called San Giorgio dei Genovesi, intended to serve the considerable Genovese population in Naples at the time. For many years, however, the church was called San Giorgo alla commedia vecchia (old theater), thus recalling the origins of the church.

Teatro dei Fiorentini

Built in the first decade of the 17th century, the Teatro dei Fiorentini was meant to replace the defunct Commedia theater. It survived as a theater into the 18th century and even survived the many subsequent years of surrounding urban renewal. An establishment calling itself the Fiorentino exists today on the same site but has not functioned as a theater for many years. It is, today, a Bingo hall.

Teatro San Bartolomeo

The predecessor of the current opera theater, San Carlo, was the theater of San Bartolomeo. Built in 1620, it was the site of the performances of the first real "opera" in Naples—that is, works by Monteverdi and others from the north, which had begun to filter down to the south. San Bartolomeo was closed and replaced by the grand theater of San Carlo in 1737. The building, itself, still survives and was converted into a church.

Italy°N date=June 2009°W