Rome Opera Fires Entire 182 Members of Orchestra and Chorus

Because of budget cuts, Rome's Opera House has fired its entire orchestra and chorus (comprising of 182 musicians and chorus members) and will replace them with outsourced musicians.

Head of one of the unions representing the performers, Paolo Terrinoni said, "It's a mortal blow for the opera house but also for culture overall in Rome and the rest of Italy."

The Teatro dell' Opera di Roma has been plagued with financial, management and union problems for several years.

Even two weeks ago, Riccardo Muti, announced that he is quitting after six years, citing "continuous protests, internal conflict and months-long strikes that led to the cancellation of several performances."

Dario Franceschini, cultural heritage minister, said it was "a painful but necessary step".

According to reports, the board says the outsourcing would save the opera 3.4 million euros (£2.7m) a year .

Read the full report here.