Francesco Tamburini began the design and died in 1891. Vittorio Meano, his pupil, co-designed it and was murdered in 1904. The Belgian architect Julio Dormal completed it in 1908 and changed parts of the structure. The cornerstone was laid in 1889, and the theater opened on May 25, 1908, with Verdi's Aïda.
The infobox lists the style as eclectic. Tamburini and Meano used an Italian style, and Dormal added French-style decoration. Luigi Trinchero made the facade bas-reliefs and busts, and Raúl Soldi painted the cupola canvas in 1966. The horseshoe auditorium seats 2,478 in the infobox and 2,487 in the text, with standing room for 1,000.
The stage is 66 feet (20 m) wide, 49 feet (15 m) high and 66 feet (20 m) deep. A survey by Leo Beranek ranked its acoustics first for opera and second for concerts. A renovation closed the house in October 2006, and it reopened on May 24, 2010.
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