The Teatro Verdi, on via Ghibellina, is one of the largest theatres in Florence, built in the 1850s on the site of an old prison, the Stinche. With its tiers of boxes and broad horseshoe auditorium, it has long been a centre of the city's musical and theatrical life and is home to the Orchestra della Toscana.
It hosts a busy programme of concerts, opera, ballet, and popular shows through the year. Unless you are attending a performance there is little to see inside, but its handsome facade anchors this corner of the Sant'Ambrogio quarter, a short walk from Casa Buonarroti and the market.