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Home , Giuditta Pasta, Grand Hotel et de Milan, Jessica Pratt (soprano)

go Stay /// Hotels by laurie kahle

A Little Night Music

I sip a glass of prosecco on my rooftop terrace When the property was purchased in 2002 by a with a book by my side, but nothing can divert my native (now the hotel’s co-owner, who wishes to

ITALY attention from the sunset view of Lake Como and remain anonymous), the villa was a dilapidated wreck CastaDiva Resort the mountains beyond. Opera music drifts from my that had been vacant for 65 years, its historical signifi- Blevio neighbor’s suite, which is fitting, given the setting. cance all but forgotten. The discovery of a personal let- 39/031-32-511 castadivaresort.com I am at the former home of 19th-century opera diva ter and a pillow monogrammed with Pasta’s initials From $460. Giuditta Pasta. The mansion, which Pasta called Villa led the owner to realize he had acquired her home. It Roda, is the centerpiece of the CastaDiva Resort, the is now one of nine villas, three historic and six newly first five-star hotel to open on Lake Como in a century. built, on the 6.4-acre property. Pasta lived here in the town of Blevio, about 30 miles Pasta’s restored villa—its colonnaded façade in- north of , from 1830 until her death in 1865. spired by Milan’s opera house—has been During that time, she collaborated with the composer decorated by designer Erasmo Figini in a bold style , who, according to legend, caught that evokes the romance of life in the theater. He com- her attention by sailing across the lake from Moltrasio missioned local artisans to replicate 19th-century to reach her villa. Pasta also hosted other cultural furniture that he upholstered in rich fabrics in shades luminaries of the era, including composer Gioachino of persimmon, olive, and gold. My suite’s living room

Rossini and the French author . is connected to the bedroom by a long hallway lined L aurie Kahle; A ll others courtesy of lodgi n gs I Nset:

54 afar march/april 2011 afar.com on one side by mirrored, gilded closets and on I am ushered backstage to meet the director, ing aria in act 1 of . Bellini was the other by a wall of sliding glass doors. Grac- Massimo Lambertini. I peek at the set as cos- living in Como when he wrote the 1831 opera ing the walls are portraits of Pasta, with her tumed actors mill about, chatting and laughing, for Pasta to show off her incredible range. The almond-shaped eyes, and the debonair, curly- before the performance. During intermission, work was hailed as his first masterpiece. I close haired Bellini. Barbara Minghetti, the theater’s president, my eyes and try to imagine Pasta’s voice, which I have entered their world, and I can hardly invites me to the Pasta Hall, a spacious room dec- writer Stendhal described as “beauty, always wait to attend a performance at Como’s 198-year- orated with portraits of the soprano and Bellini. alive with that unmistakable, burning energy, old opera house, Teatro Sociale. Before heading Minghetti points out that Pasta probably would that extraordinary dynamism that can electrify off to Bellini’s La Sonnambula, I dine on squid- have been more famous than had an entire theater.” ink ravioli stuffed with lobster at the resort’s res- she lived in the age of electronic recordings. “She After the final curtain falls, I return to Casta- taurant, L’Orangerie. is our diva, our star of Como,” says Minghetti. Diva and ascend a grand spiral staircase to my CastaDiva’s special relationship with the As I sit in my private box feeling rather noble, suite. The music has faded, but in these sur- theater offers guests VIP access. When I arrive, soprano Jessica Pratt hits the high notes of a lilt- roundings, I remain under its spell. a

Opera Hotels Around the World

Aria Hotel,

Hotel Sacher, Grand Hotel et de Milan, Italy Four Seasons Hotel Buenos Aires,

ARGENTINA hotel is located near the State Opera NEW ZEALAND Four Seasons Hotel Ritz-Carlton Beijing Financial Street House, the National Theater, and Mollies Buenos Aires Beijing the Rudolfinum, home to the Czech Auckland 54/(11) 4321-1200 86/10-6601-6666 Philharmonic Orchestra. From $257. 64/9-376-3489 fourseasons.com/buenosaires ritzcarlton.com mollies.co.nz The concierge at the Four Seasons The Ritz-Carlton’s Sights and Sounds ITALY Opera instructor Frances Wilson owns can arrange tickets and tours of the of Beijing package takes you to a Grand Hotel et de Milan this boutique hotel, where five suites Teatro Colón opera house, which Peking opera performance, where Milan are equipped with baby grand pianos, reopened last spring after a $100 mil- you’ll visit the artists’ makeup room; 39/027-23-141 and guests can enjoy informal con- lion renovation. The 103-year-old to the hotel’s apothecary, with its 88 grandhoteletdemilan.it certs by Wilson’s students, visiting theater is renowned for its acoustics. varieties of tea; to Qi restaurant for A short stroll from the La Scala opera opera stars, and the cast of the New From $495. Peking duck; and finally, to the hotel house, the Grand has a unique place Zealand Opera. From $530. spa. From $1,350 for two nights. in opera history. AUSTRIA lived—and died—here. Hotel Sacher CZECH REPUBLIC recorded here. Maria Callas and José Vienna Aria Hotel Carreras stayed here. The hotel’s La Zurich 43/(0) 1-51-456-0 Prague Scala Experience package includes 41/44-220-50-20 sacher.com 420/225-334-111 a CD and tickets to the theater www.bauraulac.ch Located across from the Vienna State ariahotel.net museum. The concierge can help you The landmark Baur au Lac offers a Opera, the Hotel Sacher hosts many At Aria Hotel, you’ll find a floor ded- get performance tickets. From $1,260 preperformance behind-the-scenes operagoers among its guests. You icated to opera, another to classi- for two nights. tour of Zurich’s opera house that may even spot a performer in the cal music, and others to jazz and allows visitors to see the costume Anna Sacher restaurant before or contemporary. The hotel’s music room and walk on the stage. From after the show. From $410. director, Ivana Stehlikova, can advise $685, not including opera tickets. you on cultural events in the city. The

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