At La Scala, Faust premiere cancelled over workers' strike

The Milan debut of Charles Gounod’s Faust did not go ahead as scheduled. The Teatro alla Scala Foundation announced that the performance planned for the evening of October 20 was cancelled due to the strike called by the theatre’s staff, and that conditions were not in place to stage the show. This is reported by ANSA, which cites the Foundation’s statement.

The new date is set for Saturday, October 24 at 7:30 pm. Those who had already purchased a ticket for the cancelled performance will be entitled to a refund, according to the theatre.

At the root of the stoppage is a mobilisation jointly promoted by Cgil, Cisl, Uil and Fials, concerning the renewal of the theatre workers’ contract and the request to recover purchasing power eroded by recent years’ inflation. This is reported by Collettiva, a publication of the same trade unions, which frames the protest within the broader ongoing debate over wages.

Among the voices of protest, one statement sums up the main demand:

“We are asking to defend wages from inflation” — Paolo Puglisi

The cancellation of the premiere marks a rare episode for one of the most internationally renowned opera houses, where union action rarely leads to the cancellation of a debut already announced to the public. At present, the only change communicated to the season’s calendar remains the four-day postponement, from October 20 to October 24, while talks between the unions and the Foundation over the contract renewal continue.