Verona Arena hosts nativity exhibition from 19 November

A new exhibition will open in the Verona Arena (Arena di Verona) in Verona on 19 November 2026, bringing Presepi dal mondo back to the amphitheatre’s vaulted arcovoli. The international nativity display will remain in place until 17 January 2027.

The return gives travellers in Italy a current reason to include the Roman amphitheatre in a winter visit, when the venue’s programme differs from its summer opera season.

Presepi dal mondo returns on 19 November

Presepi dal mondo will be promoted by Fondazione Verona per l’Arena with the patronage of the Municipality of Verona. The organiser’s official exhibition page gives the dates as 19 November 2026 to 17 January 2027.

The display is dedicated to nativity scenes and artworks inspired by the Nativity. The organiser says the material comes from museums, private collections, nativity-scene makers and enthusiasts from around the world, giving the exhibition an international range rather than a single regional tradition.

ANSA reports that the Municipality secured approval from the heritage authorities for the event. Its report on the 19 November opening says the exhibition will return to the arcovoli, the covered spaces built into the amphitheatre.

The arcovoli give the exhibition its setting

The arcovoli connect the seasonal exhibition with the physical structure of the monument. Instead of placing the nativity scenes in a separate civic building, the 2026 display will use the vaulted internal spaces of the amphitheatre itself.

The organiser describes the Verona Arena as a Roman amphitheatre built in the first century AD. Its published capacity is 20,000 spectators, while its best-known summer use is the opera season. The winter exhibition therefore presents a different use of the same monument, with the displays occupying spaces that are less visible during large outdoor performances.

The exhibition also carries a connection with the building’s recent history. ANSA says the nativity display had been moved to the Gran Guardia from 2018 while restoration work on the amphitheatre was beginning. Its return to the arcovoli links the 2026 programme to the reopening of these historic internal spaces for a public cultural event.

Why the 2026 setting matters in Verona

The display is tied to a wider religious and cultural anniversary. The 2026-2027 edition is dedicated to the 800th anniversary of the death of Saint Francis of Assisi, whose name is closely associated with the tradition of the nativity scene.

The organiser’s description also records the exhibition’s use of light, sound and projections alongside the individual nativity works. These elements are particularly relevant in the arcovoli, where the architecture creates a sequence of enclosed spaces rather than one open arena floor.

For visitors, that combination makes the venue part of the exhibition rather than a backdrop seen from outside. The link between the works and the arcovoli is the specific change for winter 2026: the displays return to the monument’s internal passageways after the intervening restoration period.

Visiting Verona Arena: what travellers from Western Europe should know

• Presepi dal mondo opens in the arcovoli of the Verona Arena on 19 November 2026 and continues until 17 January 2027.
• The public exhibition is organised by Fondazione Verona per l’Arena and presents nativity scenes and artworks from museums, collections and makers worldwide.
• The venue is the Roman amphitheatre’s vaulted internal spaces in Verona, rather than the separate Gran Guardia location used from 2018 during the restoration period.
• The monument dates from the first century AD and the organiser gives its spectator capacity as 20,000.

The return of Presepi dal mondo places an international exhibition inside one of Verona’s defining Roman structures for the winter season.

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Frequently asked questions about Verona Arena

When does Presepi dal mondo take place at Verona Arena?

The exhibition opens on 19 November 2026 and runs until 17 January 2027 in the arcovoli.

What is Presepi dal mondo at Verona Arena?

It is an international exhibition of nativity scenes and artworks inspired by the Nativity, organised by Fondazione Verona per l’Arena.

What is Verona Arena?

It is a Roman amphitheatre built in the first century AD, with a published capacity of 20,000 spectators.