San Carlo in trouble. Canessa, dean of Neapolitan theater: "Enough with the comic opera of political dissension."

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Appealing to the wisdom of the "grand elders" is no longer in fashion: no one asked Francesco Canessa , ninety-eight years old, nearly twenty of whom have been at the helm of the Teatro San Carlo, for his opinion in the months between the end of Lissner's superintendency and last Monday's meeting of the Steering Committee, when the rift between the government (and its counterpart, Campania governor Vincenzo De Luca ) and the mayor of Naples erupted. Gaetano Manfredi , who had canceled the meeting due to an engagement at Palazzo Chigi, was not happy with the appointment of Fulvio Macciardi, former superintendent of the Teatro Comunale di Bologna: as president of the Neapolitan theater foundation, he refused to ratify it and turned the matter over to the lawyers, announcing a barrage of appeals to the Regional Administrative Court and the civil courts.

The latest storm at Europe's oldest operating theater doesn't ruin, but rather embitters Canessa's summer. He's resting in the Capri villa of a family truly committed to opera: his father's younger sister married Enrico Jr., second son of the great Caruso. "The news about the San Carlo doesn't make me sick, but it does stimulate my mind: these days I'm desperately trying to understand what makes this theater different from others that it can fuel so many political appetites, and such poorly organized ones at that. It wasn't like this before: I've looked back over my very long tenure, 19 years and four months, but I don't recall anyone ever asking me to choose one baritone over another because he was a Christian Democrat or a Socialist ."

Doesn't memory sometimes soften the past? "Politics were there, but they didn't invade: they confirmed me over and over again as superintendent without a fight and under different mayors. The only interference, I swear, was a phone call from Antonio Gava to recommend the daughter of one of his collaborators who wanted to enter the dance academy. Not even the unions, who wielded real power at the time, seriously interfered. They made a bit of a fuss, but by the time the curtain was raised, their differences were put aside. Now, however, it seems to me that theatrical activity is a secondary interest ."

If someone called you, what would you suggest? "Who wants me to call? I'm a man of the last century, and when they describe you as emeritus or dean, it means you're no longer relevant. My unsolicited advice is to avoid a new Stéphane Lissner case, who appealed against the clumsy appointment of former RAI CEO Carlo Fuortes and was reinstated with profuse apologies. I understand Manfredi's disappointment, but if he had a strong name in recent months, he should have already put it forward. Macciardi's appointment may have passed with some anomaly, with the vote of only three out of five councilors in a meeting canceled that very morning, but challenging it risks stinging both Macciardi and a potential candidate, of whom only he is currently familiar, who is favored by the mayor."

The emeritus advises swallowing the bitter pill: "It's also a question of resume: Macciardi led the Bologna Comunale for two terms during a very troubled time, he is the president of the National Association of Opera and Symphonic Foundations, which brings together Italy's fourteen opera houses, and he also sits on the board of Opera Europa in Brussels. It seems to me that he can guarantee the international prestige that is the San Carlo's true strength better than any internal candidate . No one, as far as I know, has the credentials to compete. The controversial Fuortes would have had them, but he's doing very well at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and will stay there. The important thing is that they stop arguing, for the good of the San Carlo and beyond the legal quibbles: politics is one thing and La Traviata is another."

Memory warms the emeritus: "It's strange that such a mess arises in such a technical sector. Only those who have directed important theaters know what it means to reconcile conductors, singers, orchestra, chorus, ballet corps, and stagehands. In opera houses, everyone experiences the euphoria of the stage and everyone feels like a protagonist. To run them successfully, just any manager isn't enough." How will it end? "I'll end with a joke: opera buffa was banned at the San Carlo, and they're performing it offstage. Let's laugh about it, because those who don't laugh cry."

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