Need help with online Teatro Alla Scala tickets
 

Hi all,
I'm planning a 2 week trip to Italy in November and I have 1 burning question right now... I was hoping to buy tickets to Don Giovanni on November 12th and the tickets went on sale today. When I try to book online, it says no tickets are available.

Is this normal? Do they add tickets to the online service after they're on sale for a while or is the show maybe sold for all dates? If it's just that these tickets are not available online, is the only other way to get them at a reasonable price (not with a huge markup) to get them the day of the show?

Thanks in advance for your answers. If this isn't going to work, at least I can be disappointed now and get over it before November... :) I'm not having any success finding details on their website so I thought I'd post to the experts (hopefully I won't have to call Italy). Here's the website I'm trying to go through - please let me know if there's a better place to buy tickets.

http://www.leonidaniele.it/teatri/se....php?ocode=153

It says there are tickets available on this page:

http://sell.charta.it/cgi-bin/mrscal...=0&index=2

And if you still have trouble, put >La Scala tickets< into the Search Box. A while ago, someone posted a long description of how he went about getting tickets through the La Scala Web site (which is how I got to the above page as well).

jbee, before a recent trip to Venice I checked the website about three weeks before for a performance of the Magic Flute and no luck! I heard they put tickets back on-line sometimes, so I kept checking and about 10 days before my trip ONE ticket appeared on-line, which I grabbed immediately!

BTW, it was a magical experience, so best of luck!

Regards Ger

Thanks for the quick responses!

Eloise,
Hi Eloise,
If you look at Sunday 12/11/06, the available quantity is 0. If you click into the map page to select your seats, there's nothing as well. I've read the thread you're refering to and I was all ready to purchase - I have the passports, etc. Maybe I have to wait until tomorrow?

Ger,
Thanks for the heads up as well. If I don't get any results, I'll just keep checking.

Oppss, sorry I was talking about La Fenice in Venice, not La Scala. Same website though, so hopefully the same principle applies.

I'd like to go there for an opera as well, but nothing is showing in November - bummer!

Jbee,

So sorry - I just saw the bright green "Buy" button and overlooked the small black 0.

And I can't find the thread I mentioned earlier, unfortunately.

Is this the thread you were thinking of?

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34776082

I saw that green button and was pretty excited myself. You should have seen my face drop when I got to the next page and no seats were highlighted! :O

http://www.ticket-finders.com/la_scala_november.htm

Just how badly do you want the tickets? I found this website, but check out the prices!!!!

Not that badly! I've been to that website before and almost lost it when I saw those prices. The ones from the official site are much more in my range - 50 to 100 eur per ticket.

Jbee,

Yes, that's the one! I probably couldn't find it because I entered "La Scala tickets" as a single term. I should have known better...

Good luck getting your tickets! Anecdotal evidence seems to show that it <b>is</b> possible to get tickets to performances that look sold out.

I'm sure I don't understand the best way to get La Scala tickets, but a couple of observations from my attempts:

It seems to be much easier to get tickets for performances which aren't of operas sung in Italian or by Italian composers. I failed miserably to get Idomeneo tickets (trying at 10am on the day they went on sale), but it was easy to get Onegin tickets for weeks after they went on sale.

IF the system is the same as La Fenice (which it may not be) the tickets may be released in different stages. I tried to get Valkrie tickets at La Fenice on the day they went on sale and was only permitted to buy for one performance as the others were season-ticket only. I happened to look at Charta again several weeks later and tickets to all dates had been released.

Given my overall experience with Italian opera houses, all I can really say is good luck!

(P.S. Travel for the Arts do specific opera holidays with tickets for popular operas, if you have your heart set on Don Giovanni it might be worth contacting them, Their website should come up if you google).

papagena,
Thanks for the response. I'll try not to get disappointed too quickly. I don't have my heart set on Don Givoanni, but I don't see any other performances at Alla Scala or La Fenice during our stay.

Maybe someone has an alternate suggestion? Our travel dates are:

November 11-14 Milan
November 15-18 Florence
November 19-23 Venice

I'd like to attend either a ballet, opera, or musical concert with my preference being the ballet or opera. Any ideas?

Have you asked your hotels if they can assist you?

jbee,

Did you call the box office?

Jean and bardo,
Thanks for the suggestions! I was trying to avoid a call to Italy at this point, but I'll probably have to call someone. I'll try the box office first and my hotel second.

I was ultimately trying to figure out how La Scala lists their tickets - like if online tickets aren't available immediately. Looks like this might be a unique case. I'll keep you posted!

I'd email the hotel first and provide credit card information and alternative date(s) if any.

I'd practically beg borrow and steal to see Don Giovanni at La Scala-I'm serious, too-it is generally considered one of the finest operas ever composed (of course by Mozart-and I believe that if there are humans still on this earth or on other planets thousands of years from now-they will still be listening to Mozart with the same rapture as he is listened to by millions around the world today-he is truly immortal).

And yes, I walked right into La Scala the last time I was in Milan-had a lovely box seat as well-for one of the most boring German operas on earth-so you won't generally have problems securing same-day tickets for those-but operas sung in Italian-particularly a Mozart opera-very, very difficult-however, that wouldn't stop me-I'd go to a ticket broker and do whatever I could to get a ticket for one of these performances.

jbee, girlspy reminds me of something.

I apparently got the very LAST ticket to La Fenice on the website. When the lights went down, I'd say at least 10% of the seats (some GREAT ones!) were empty. After the intermission, some of these seats were filled, but definitely not all. The most frustrating thing was I really wanted a seat in the Royal box (there are at least 30) and most of them were empty. Perhaps they are always reserved by corporations, but perhaps they are released if not used. So even if you don’t get a ticket in advance, you should try the ticket office on the day.

BTW, The Magic Flute was sung/spoken in German with electronic sub-titles in Italian. The experience was wonderful, but I would have murdered for a ticket to a good hearty Italian extravaganza

Regards Ger

Sigh. You guys aren't helping! Now I REALLY want tickets! :)

I emailed La Scala to see if the show was sold out and the response was reserved seats were being released daily. Unfortunately, the number available online is still 0. I'm going to try my hotel and see if they can help. The drama continues....