Verona Opera dress code suggestions
 

Hi,
I will be going to an opera at the Arena di Verona in a few weeks. What is the dress code for a male attending this event ? As you know it is an outdoor event but I do not want to stand out by not being dressed properly.
Thanks for any suggestions you can offer.

Depends on where you are sitting. If you are in the Poltronissima (and particularly Gold) the patrons will generally be better dressed although there are always a lot of tourists and it is summer so I wouldn't say that is a constant. If you go back to the gradinata (stone steps), it is much more casual with people picnicking, etc.

Personally, I wear trousers, polo shirt, sport jacket, loafers without socks and I am comfortable both temperature and style wise (and I generally sit in Poltronissima Gold).

That first paragraph seems to summarize pretty well what I've seen when there for the operas. If going for the stone steps, you may want to bring a cushion upon which to sit -- that or buy the inflatable ones there. Personally, I like the "stone steps" because it just feels more time immemorial.

Thanks for your help!

If you want visual guidance, look at the first couple of minutes of this video (from a Verona performance earlier this summer) - the cameras wander through the crowd and you see how people dress in the different sections:

http://youtu.be/WC2EaceLfFE

(the Balllo performance is a traditionalist park-and-barker, not to my taste and with typical Verona casting, although Meli will be seen in four days in the new Salzburg 'Trovatore' with Netrebko and Domingo(!))

It looks like the season ends Sep. 7. Is that true? I will be in Italy Sept. 14-Oct. 4 and being someone who enjoys classical music, would like to visit something like this. Any suggestions for where else to go? I looked at La Scala but don't see a whole lot during dates that work for us.