Opera Taormina: how to book the show

What you are buying

You are buying an entry ticket to an opera evening at the Teatro Nazarena in Taormina. It comes with a glass of Italian Prosecco and water, and the evening lasts about 1.5 hours. You start at the main entrance of the theatre, and each date on the booking page carries its own start time. Nothing else is promised with the ticket, so treat dinner, further drinks and transport as separate plans. The evening is the organiser's own format, a recital of famous arias and duets, and the organiser says it is built for anyone, whether a newcomer to opera or a regular.

Who sings and plays

The performers are professional singers accompanied by pianists. The organising association, Italian Opera Live, says its concerts draw above all on young Sicilian opera singers, and its site lists artists by voice type, from sopranos and mezzo-sopranos to tenors, baritones and a bass. The cast on your date is not fixed in advance. Book for the evening and the repertoire, not for a named singer, and expect the pairing of voices to change from one night to the next. Artist profiles on the organiser's site give you a sense of the pool the casts come from.

What is on the bill

The organiser names five composers: Mozart, Verdi, Puccini, Donizetti and Rossini. Its description is the most famous arias and duets of the Italian operatic repertoire, so the music is familiar even to people who have never sat through a full opera. No aria is promised for a given night, and the programme on your date is the organiser's choice. If you want to know the stories behind the numbers you are likely to hear, the guide to arias for first-time listeners on this site sets them out composer by composer. The organiser has also run a separate season of full operas in the same theatre, which is a different series from the recital.

Read next: Opera arias for first-timers in Taormina

Choosing a date

The booking page lists the evenings on sale and the start time of each. The season has gaps, so look at the dates before you fix the rest of your trip around one particular night. Because the show starts in the evening and lasts about 1.5 hours, you can dine before or afterwards, and a long Sicilian dinner after the last aria is easy to plan. The page flags the evening as likely to sell out, which argues for booking early, and a free cancellation window means an early booking costs little if plans shift.

Seats and ticket types

The booking page for your date lists the ticket types that are on sale. If it offers more than one, read what each adds before you choose, because seating is the usual difference between types of ticket in a small theatre. The organiser calls the setting intimate; it is the size of the room that creates the closeness between audience and artists. Seat numbers and categories are shown at booking, not promised here, because they can change from one date to the next. If a date shows no choice of ticket, that is the whole offer for that night, and you simply pick the number of guests.

Reviews on the booking page

Travellers rate this evening highly on the booking page. Travellers praise the singers and the pianist and call the small venue a welcoming introduction to opera. Some mention that the theatre can feel warm and say better ventilation would help, which is why light layers are worth packing. Many describe the evening as enjoyable and well performed. Reviews are one traveller's view of one night, so use them for tone and not as a promise about your date.

Booking terms on the GetYourGuide ticket

A GetYourGuide booking can be cancelled up to a day ahead with the whole fare returned, and a seat can be held now and paid for afterwards. Those terms belong to a booking made there. If you buy directly from the organiser instead, its own terms apply, and they may differ. The ticket is marked wheelchair accessible. Taormina is a hill town with steps, so ask the organiser through its own site about the route and seating if access matters to you. Keep the confirmation, since it carries the details of your date and the meeting point.

Booking here or on the organiser's site

The organiser sells tickets itself, with payment by PayPal or Stripe, and its site says children up to six attend free. A booking through GetYourGuide has its own ticket types, its own child rules and its own cancellation terms. The two can differ, so read the page you actually buy on. Compare the final price, the ticket type and the cancellation window, then choose the one that suits your plans. This site earns a commission only on a GetYourGuide booking, and it does not sell tickets itself.

First opera or tenth?

The organiser says the evening is meant for newcomers and regulars alike, and that its aim is to break down the belief that opera is music for the few. For a first opera the format is forgiving: the pieces are short, the singers are close and nobody asks you to follow a plot for three hours. If you already love opera, the draw is the voices and the room. Either way, the same ticket applies, and the booking page is where to compare dates. Newcomers are the audience the format was designed for.

Not the ancient theatre

Taormina has two famous stages, and visitors mix them up. The ancient theatre is a Hellenistic theatre that was rebuilt under Roman rule, with Mount Etna in the view on a clear day. The opera evening is held at the Teatro Nazarena at Via Fontana Vecchia 3, a theatre in the town. The ancient theatre is a monument to visit, and any performance there is a separate event with its own tickets. If a page shows a photograph of the ruin, that photograph does not show where this show takes place, so check the venue name before you pay.

Who this isn't for

Look elsewhere for a full staged opera with orchestra and sets: this is a recital of arias and duets with piano. Look elsewhere too for the ancient theatre, or for a dinner show, since a meal is not part of the ticket. Think twice if steps and slopes are a problem on the way to a venue, because Taormina is a hill town; ask the organiser about the route before you book. For everyone else, about 1.5 hours with an interval is a short evening by opera standards.