NOTRE DAME DE PARIS will return to Italian theaters starting from February 26, 2026 with over 120,000 tickets already sold.
Staged for the first time in Italy in 2002, NOTRE DAME DE PARIS will celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary in 2027, an achievement that will mark a quarter of a century of emotions, music and poetry.
Riccardo Cocciante, author of the show's music, is at the center of this incredible project which sees Pasquale Panella's masterful adaptation into Italian of Luc Plamondon's texts, from Victor Hugo's novel of the same name which tells the dramatic love story between Esmeralda and Quasimodo, against the backdrop of the majestic Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris.
Since its first staging, the show has entered the hearts of the Italian public, a country where musical theater and opera have deep roots. NOTRE DAME DE PARIS has contributed to consolidating the love for this mix of art forms to the point of becoming a popular phenomenon that has managed to conquer 4.5 million spectators in Italy alone over the years and has consolidated itself as one of the most long-lived works of Italian culture. NOTRE DAME DE PARIS continues to grow without ever getting old, the work confirms its strength thanks to the universal themes that are conveyed through its characters. The story focuses on marginalization, the fear of what is different and the weight of prejudices to remind us how diversity represents a resource and not a threat. What makes the show so current is the ability to convey the fragility and contradictions of the human being: the search for a place in the world, the need for justice, the desire for love. Elements which, after decades, continue to confirm this modern popular work as a classic capable of crossing generations and borders.
The Italian version of the show debuted for the first time in Italy in 2002 and was produced by David Zard, founder of one of the most prestigious and influential businesses in the field of live show production which brought artists of the caliber of Pink Floyd, Bob Dylan, Genesis, Michael Jackson, Led Zeppelin and Madonna to Italy for the first time. Zard recognized right from the start that no existing theater in Italy offered the size and characteristics to accommodate such an innovative setup, so for the occasion he had the GranTeatro in Rome built, making a courageous choice that allowed the show to find a suitable venue for its debut in our country. Since the 1970s, Zard's aim was to demonstrate that young people had something to say and that they were not to be considered a “lost generation”. From that moment his has been a story of perennial challenges against the impossible, crowned by numerous conquests and successes, marked by historical turning points and innovations from which the Italian musical panorama has benefited.
NOTRE DAME DE PARIS is a true cult of live entertainment and has dominated the ranking of theatrical titles, surpassing the attendance of the greatest live performances of rock and pop music. The modern popular work has been translated and adapted into 9 languages (French, English, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Korean, Flemish, Polish and Kazakh), spanning 20 countries around the world with over 5,650 performances and attracting 18 million international spectators, of which 4.5 million in Italy alone. In over two decades of Italian history, the show has touched 49 cities with 181 events and a total of 1,548 performances.
The magic that makes NOTRE DAME DE PARIS a timeless work also passes through dance, which naturally combines different languages - from classical ballet to breakdance – offering the public an ever new visual experience. This is accompanied by the strength of the musical component: the songs performed on stage are songs, hits, which have a life of their own even outside of the show. Precisely this combination of styles, bodies and sounds returns a new form of contemporary popular opera which has its roots in the great European tradition of drama in music and mixes with the modern techniques of concerts and the direction of live shows.
CREDITS
Music: Riccardo Cocciante
French author: Luc Plamondon
Italian author: Pasquale Panella
Director: Gilles Maheu
Choreography: Martino Müller
Production design: Christian Rätz
Costumes: Fred Sathal
Lighting: Alain Lortie
Sound: Manu Guiot
Arrangements: Riccardo Cocciante – Jannick Top – Serge Perathoner
CAST
Esmeralda: Elhaida Dani
Quasimodo: Giò Di Tonno
Frollo: Vittorio Matteucci
Clopin: Angel of the Elder
Gringoire: Gianmarco Schiaretti
Phoebus: Graziano Galatone
Cornflower: Camilla Rinaldi
And over 30 artists including dancers, acrobats and breakers
THE DATES
From 26 February to 15 March 2026 – Milan @ Teatro Arcimboldi
From 17 to 29 March 2026 – Milan @ Teatro Arcimboldi NEW DATES
From 3 to 7 April 2026 – Jesolo (VE) @ Palazzo del Turismo
From 18 to 19 April 2026 – Eboli (SA) @ PalaSele
From 24 to 26 April 2026 – Pesaro @ Vitrifrigo Arena
From 7 to 9 May 2026 – Reggio Calabria @ PalaCalafiore
From 22 to 24 May 2026 – Montichiari (BS) @ PalaGeorge
From 27 to 31 May 2026 – Lugano @ LAC
From 1 to 5 July 2026 – Genoa @ Teatro Carlo Felice
From 10 to 12 July 2026 – Senigallia @Piazza Garibaldi NEW STAGE
From 17 to 19 July 2026 – Royal Palace of Caserta @Piazza Carlo di Borbone
From 22 to 24 July 2026 – Ferrara @ Piazza Ariostea
From 30 July to 1 August – Lanciano @ Parco Villa delle Rose NEW STAGE
From 12 to 14 August – Sabaudia @Arena del Mare NEW STAGE
From 6 to 8 August 2026 – Olbia (SS) @ Olbia Arena
From 24 to 30 August 2026 – Palermo @ Teatro di Verdura
From 10 to 13 September 2026 – Torre del Lago (LU) @ Gran Teatro Giacomo Puccini
From 1 to 4 October – Verona @Arena di Verona NEW STAGE
From 9 to 11 October – Bergamo @ ChorusLife Arena NEW STAGE
From 22 to 25 October 2026 – Messina @ PalaRescifina
From 28 October to 2 November 2026 – Naples @ PalaPartenope NEW DATE
From 10 to 15 November 2026 – Bari @ Palaflorio
From 18 to 22 November 2026 – Florence @ Nelson Mandela Forum NEW DATE
From 27 to 29 November 2026 – Conegliano (TV) @ Prealpi SanBiagio Arena
From 4 to 6 December 2026 – Turin @ Inalpi Arena
7 and 8 November 2026 – Bari @Palaflorio NEW DATES
From 11 to 13 December 2026 – Casalecchio di Reno (BO) @ Unipol Arena
From 16 to 22 December 2026 – Trieste @ Teatro Politeama Rossetti
From 26 to 29 December 2026 – Rome @Palazzo dello Sport
From 2 to 6 January 2027 – Rome @Palazzo dello Sport NEW DATES
