Apollo driving the chariot of the sun accompanied by nymphs

This is a design for the top of the proscenium arch (above the stage) in the Teatro Tordinona, later known as the Teatro Apollo, in Rome. First built in 1670 at the insistence of Christine of Sweden (1626-1689), the theatre was situated on the banks of the Tiber opposite the Castel Sant’Angelo. The building, which was the first Roman theatre to adopt the now commonly used horse-shoe design, underwent three distinct incarnations before it was destroyed in 1888 to make way for the bastions that now control the flow of the river. The present drawing dates to the final re-modelling of the theatre, necessitated in 1781 by a fire that destroyed the main body of the former building; the re-named Teatro Apollo opened its doors again in 1795. In a cross-section of the theatre executed by Felice Georgi, the architect tasked with rebuilding the theatre at this time, the mural taken from the present design is clearly visible above the stage, indicating that Maderna was involved in the schema for the decoration from a relatively early point. The changes made to the structure of the building at this date also improved the acoustics of the room and opened up the theatre to opera. Works such as Verdi’s Il trovatore, Rossini’s Matilde di Shabran and Donizetti’s Le Duc d’Albe all premiered at the Teatro Apollo.