The _abbonamento_ (or subscription) to a diurno costs from three
to ten dollars for the season of thirty or forty representations. When
a dramatic company is about to visit a city the manager first secures
his _abbonati_, for according to their number he is able to regulate
his expenses, as he counts little on chance spectators, and is sure to
have almost always to play before the same audience.
The lyric stage in Italy takes precedence of the dramatic, and in the
large cities, Milan, Venice, Genoa, Florence, Rome and Naples, the
production of a new opera is considered a national event, forming for
many days previous to its production the chief topic of conversation
in salons and _caffes_. No such enthusiasm is manifested in regard to
the first representation of a new play; and although the house may be
crowded and the author called before the curtain, he may deem himself
happy if his drama is played four times during the season; whereas
a popular opera will be given night after night for two months. An
opera, if it has any merit, may be the means of carrying the fame of
Italian genius to the farthest limits of the earth, but it is a chance
if the comedy which pleases at Venice will be appreciated in the
least degree at Rome or Naples, such are the variations in manners
and customs, especially amongst the lower orders, between one Italian
province and another. Hence, opera is greatly fostered and protected.
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