8.5 million euros: this is the sum that the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino must find by the end of July to avoid bankruptcy, Classical Radio tells us. After the resignation of its superintendent Alexander Pereira in early March, amid an investigation for embezzlement, an audit revealed the great financial difficulties of the Florence opera. The debt would amount to 57 million euros, including 6 million losses still recorded last year, the year 2023 should still show a deficit of 2 million. As many as 300 jobs are at risk.
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To avoid administrative liquidation, the Tuscan institution could part with all or part of its archives, whose value is estimated at 13 million euros. A heritage composed of more than 100,000 objects, with thousands of sketches and posters signed by the greatest artists (Guttuso, De Chirico ...), models, costumes and autographs. The Uffizi Museum would be interested.
Sceptical unions
Selling such a collection to fill the financial imbalance, however, questions the trade unions. "If in the coming days we continue to talk about the sale of the Maggio historical archives to solve the economic crisis, it will mean that we do not want to face the problem. By the time you're ready to sell, assuming it's a good idea, our theater will have already gone bankrupt!" they warned in late May in a statement.
A few hours after the union note, an official statement from the institution abounded in this direction: "It is worth specifying that a possible alienation of the archives, even to public institutions, would require technical times that do not coincide at all with the extraordinary and urgent needs of the Maggio Fiorentino. As has been said several times, unfortunately, in order to guarantee the solvency of the Foundation, certain reliable financial resources and/or guarantees are needed in a very short time: July 2023".
