“A stunningly beautiful building La Fenice certainly is. Ingeniously wedged into a tiny space surrounded by canals just to the west of St Mark’s square, it had only 814 seats, now 990 (compared with La Scala’s or Covent Garden’s 2,000). With its curves, its rococo decorations and its five levels of blue-and-gold boxes, galleries and its crystal lamps, it radiates a matchless theatrical warmth. But the reason the Venice opera house has a special place in the hearts of opera lovers is also the reason why it burned to the ground in January 1996.”