San Vidal concert in Venice. Cannot find this church in my guidebooks!
 

I must be losing it. I just bought tickets for a Vivaldi concert at "San Vidal" in Venice. But for the life of me, I cannot locate San Vidal in either my Rick Steve's Venice guidebook nor my DK Eyewitness guidebook.

Anyone been there? Does it go by any other name?

We'll be catching the vaporetto at San Marcuola the night of the concert. Any good directions from there would be appreciated!

Grazie!

Oh, and PS, the concert starts at 9. Are the seats first come, first serve? What time should we plan on arriving in order to get a good seat?

Thx!

The Chiesa San Vidal is at the end of Campo Santo Stefano near the Accademia bridge---that must be it.

Google. It's all over the internet.

Well, StCirq-that would have been too easy. ;) I found it now, on Google. (Still can't figure out why no mention in my guidebooks, though.)

Thanks all! Still interested in any input on how early we need to arrive for May 18th concert.

Thanks!

Sarge, I didn't mean to be curt. I would have given you actual links, but I was multi-tasking here (on the phone and reading Fodors).

It seems to be in LOnely Planet's guidebook, according to Google, but I don't use that guidebook much.

sarge56, seating is first-come. We had dinner on Piazza San Stefano within sight of the church and noticed people arriving at least 20 minutes early, so we settled up our bill and joined the crowd. We got seats about halfway back, but I think some people ended up standing at the sides and back.

I believe San Vidal is desanctified so perhaps that's why its not listed--it's only used for concerts and exhibits now. Open seating and, for me, uncomfortable folding chairs. I am plus size and found the chairs a squeeze. I don't know if there were better chairs closer to the front--we were halfway back.

Thanks, Jean and Ellen. We'll get there 30 minutes before and hope for a chair. (Ellen-I've lost 40+ pounds since we last met; folding chairs still uncomfortable, but not as much as my last visit. hahahah)

Any recs for restaurants in the immediate area of the church? thx!

The statue of the gent in San Stefano is known as "the book shitter". You will understand once you see it.

Venetians do have a sense of humor when they called this statue the Il Cagalibri:

http://tinyurl.com/acneb9c

Is is about 15-20 minute walk from San Vidal.

It's a few years ago now, but the chairs were like director's chairs, folding but with arms, like you're sitting in a sling, narrower than usual, so the arms can be quite close to the body. The chairs might also be challenging for someone who needs firm back support. By the way, I enjoyed the concert.

Most of the venues (all?) charge extra - 10 E. or so - for front rows seating. As with flying, aisle seats are helpful to minimize the discomfort.

The chairs I remember were wooden with narrow seats and no arms. Any shifting around caused squeaks and creaks, so the challenge (at least for me) was to remain still during the music.

We enjoyed the concert too and enjoyed the people-watching on the piazza during dinner.