Opera in Rome in magnificent location
The concerts take place in the magnificent Theatre of Palazzo Santa Chiara, situated inside a historical building in the centre of Rome, only 100 meters walk from the Pantheon.
History of Cappella del Transito
Wanted in Rome by Pope Urban VI, St. Catherine of Siena arrived there in 1378, followed by numerous disciples. The present chapel was at that time one of the rooms of a residence of Dominican tertiaries.
The disciples of St. Catherine of Siena inhabited the building for more than two centuries until they moved to the Monastery of St. Catherine in Magnanapoli.
The lodgings were sold first to the College of the Neophytes and later, under Pope Urban VIII, to the Archconfraternity of the SS. Annunziata, eventually coming to be owned by the IPAB - Istituzione Pubblica di Assistenza e Beneficenza, now the Pio Istituto della SS. Annunziata.
In 1638, commissioned by the Archconfraternity of the Ss. Annunziata, work began on the renovation of the Chapel, which had already been deprived of the walls and flooring, moved and rebuilt as relics in the church of S. Maria sopra Minerva, and of the 15th-century frescoes, transferred along with the furnishings to the monastery of S. Caterina in Magnanapoli, at the behest of Cardinal Antonio Barberini, brother of Pope Urban VIII. Hence, the task assigned to the painter Giuseppe Cesari, known as the Cavalier d'Arpino, who entrusted his School with the creation of the canvases that would decorate the walls of the Saint's room, which are still present in the Chapel today.
The Saint's mortal remains, since 1380, have rested in the Basilica of S. Maria sopra Minerva.
Currently, inside the Chapel, the relics of three Holy Martyrs are kept: St. Ioannis, St. Heraclii and St. Exuperantie.
Thanks to the allocation of funds by the Ministry of Cultural and Environmental Heritage, obtained through the interest of Prof. Giuliana Cavallini, an internationally renowned scholar of the Sienese, between 1989 and 2000 the Chapel was thus completely restored, still preserving part of the original 14th-century ceiling.
After major aesthetic/functional upgrades to Palazzo Santa Chiara, carried out by the current management of Gustavo Cuccurullo, the Chapel, which is still consecrated, is now open to the public.
