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Times
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Times
No shoes, no shirt, no opera as Milan's La Scala enforces dress code
Opera lovers arriving at Milan's La Scala theatre in shorts, vests or flip-flops are to be turned away without a refund after complaints from dapper regulars about slipping standards. The drive to get patrons to dress more formally follows an all-around dip in decorum and rise in tourism, which has resulted in people heading into La Scala's red velvet-lined boxes clutching bags of burgers before taking photos throughout performances with their phones. A warning now printed on tickets and on posters in the foyer has pictures of a vest, a pair of shorts, flip-flops and a hamburger with thick red lines through them. A spokesman for the opera house said: 'We don't want to tell people what to wear, but we do want them to at least wear something.' Opened in 1778, La Scala remains a centrepiece of Italian culture, where the country's great and good turn out in dinner jackets and gowns for the season opener in December. A dress code was introduced in 2015 when Milan hosted the Expo World Fair and La Scala welcomed first-timers as it stayed open throughout the summer. But Dominique Meyer, the theatre's French former director, took a lax approach, claiming that he would rather have badly dressed opera fans than empty seats, pointing out that he was criticised in his youth for showing up dressed down at the Paris opera. Now, as management at La Scala reversed Meyer's decision, the venue has said that young opera fans are not the problem, but the tourists who have poured into Milan since the Expo. Visitor numbers hit nine million last year, up from 7.5 million in 2019 — a shock for the traditionally staid financial capital of Italy. An article in the Italian daily La Stampa on Monday said: 'The truth is La Scala is infested with tourists who see it as a tourist attraction, take selfies and leave at the first interval.' La Scala's spokesman said there had been a 'change in behaviour led by visitors who do not follow opera but see La Scala as a landmark'. Last year a spectator in the stalls was hit by a phone dropped from a box during a performance. 'Some come underdressed although others are overdressed, arriving in dinner jackets for 2pm performances,' he added. In the first few days since the decorum warning was issued, no one had been turned back, suggesting the message was getting through. The spokesman said he was also optimistic about next year. 'We are doing the complete Ring Cycle by Wagner, and Wagner devotees tend to be very well dressed,' he said.
The Guardian
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘Shorts and flip-flops are not allowed': La Scala enforces opera dress code ban
Opera-goers have been warned they will be banned from entering Milan's prestigious La Scala theatre if they turn up wearing shorts, tank tops or flip-flops. Kimonos, however, are acceptable. The venue's management team reminded people how not to dress for an opera after complaints that some spectators were donning attire more suitable for the beach. A 'rules of conduct' sign has been placed at La Scala's entrance urging its audience to 'choose clothing in keeping with the decorum of the theatre', adding that 'spectators wearing tank tops, shorts and flip-flops are not allowed'. Those who arrive inappropriately dressed will not be given a refund. The message has also been placed on tickets and the opera house's website. The anti-beachwear dress code was introduced in 2015, the year Milan hosted the World Expo and La Scala stayed open for the entire summer, as a way to stop people from turning up in swimming costumes. But until now it has never been strictly enforced, partly because of calls for more tolerance over attire by La Scala's former French director, Dominique Meyer, who in his youth was criticised by fellow spectators at Paris Opera productions for his 'worker's look'. Meyer later became the general director of the opera company. 'The rules now need to be reinforced, especially due to the heat we've been experiencing,' said a spokesperson for La Scala. 'Some spectators were getting annoyed after seeing others not dress appropriately, for example in flip-flops, especially in a theatre where people are sitting shoulder-to-shoulder.' The tank top ban does not prohibit women from wearing sleeveless blouses or dresses, and, according to the Corriere della Sera newspaper, the flip-flop ban does not prevent 'Japanese spectators with kimonos and traditional footwear' from entering. Before 2015, there was a message on La Scala tickets recommending a 'jacket and tie', although the formal dress code was not obligatory. However, there is an unspoken rule that people should at least be elegantly clothed. 'It is incorrect to tell people how to dress, but they do need to be dressed,' the spokesperson said. The dress code reminder is part of a broader overhaul on etiquette rules at La Scala. Spectators are banned from bringing their own food and drink and from taking photos and filming during performances. In addition, opera-goers must not place their mobile phones on the balustrade of balcony boxes after one fell off and hit a spectator seated below.
