Teatro de la Sena

The Teatro de la Sena is a small eighteenth-century opera house built inside the Palazzo della Ragione on Piazza Maggiore in Feltre -- so the town's civic hall and its theatre are the same building.

The present interior dates from a rebuilding of 1802 by Giannantonio Selva, the architect of La Fenice in Venice, and it follows the same formula at a fraction of the scale: a horseshoe auditorium in timber, with tiers of boxes.

For a town of this size to have a theatre by the architect of La Fenice is the sort of disproportion that makes small Veneto towns worth paying attention to.

This is a small working theatre in a town without a tourism economy, maintained on limited means. Buying a ticket is both the best way to see it and the direct contribution.

The interior is timber and painted decoration, and it is fragile. Do not touch the box fronts, and follow whatever the staff ask.

Photography is generally restricted during performances; ask rather than assume.

Park below the old town and walk up through Via Mezzaterra -- the streets at the top are narrow and residential.

Access is limited. The theatre is not routinely open as a monument: it opens for performances, and otherwise for guided visits arranged through the tourist office or on particular days.

Check with the tourist office in Piazza Maggiore before counting on getting in.

The best way to see it is to attend something -- the season is small but the tickets are inexpensive by any standard.

It is in the Palazzo della Ragione on Piazza Maggiore, at the top of the old town, a ten-minute climb from the lower town or a short walk from the upper parking.

The building is historic, with stairs to the upper tiers; ground-level access to the stalls is generally possible but worth confirming.