The exhibition path of Casa di Carlo Goldoni, a museum dedicated to the famous Venetian playwright, is enriched with a new, essential piece to tell the Venetian theatrical history, and beyond, from the 17th to the 19th century: through the display of a selection of documents from the Vendramin Fund coming from the Theatrical Library of Casa Carlo Goldoni. A precious collection composed of over 160 archival units, including documents dated between 1448 and 1871, offering a unique insight into the glorious past of the Teatro di San Luca, one of the oldest Venetian theaters, active since its foundation in 1622 and still alive today as Teatro Goldoni. 

Moreover, these are invaluable documents to provide a glimpse into the life and theatrical work of the early 18th century, the theater management, the relationships of the Vendramin family with companies, actors, especially Carlo Goldoni, during the happy period when his most famous comedies were created. 

The selection on display represents only a part of a much larger historical archive, about 300 envelopes, with documents from the 14th to the 19th century, preserved not only in the Theatrical Library of Casa Carlo Goldoni, but also in the Library of the Correr Museum. Always available for consultation by scholars and enthusiasts. 

A journey into the Venetian theatrical history

Therefore, the Vendramin Fund is an essential resource for the study of Venetian theatrical culture and its influences on the European stage. Among the preserved materials are documents related to the foundation and restorations of the Teatro di San Luca; among the most significant documents is the deed that attests to the year of the theater's foundation in 1622, stating: to make a theater out of that warehouse, to perform comedies, promising to spend about three thousand ducats, more or less. The signatures at the bottom of the document are all from the Vendramin family, sealing a transition between cousins of the ownership of that warehouse in San Salvador, in exchange for the commitment to turn it into a theater. 

Also, precious and indispensable testimonies are the original contracts between Carlo Goldoni and the nobleman Francesco Vendramin, the impresario of San Luca, along with about thirty autograph letters from the playwright. 

Thanks to this extraordinary collection, it is possible to delve not only into Goldoni's theatrical production but also into the central role that the Vendramin family, enrolled in the Venetian patriciate in 1381, played in the history of the city's theaters. The Vendramin family, in fact, owned the theater for over three centuries until the Municipality of Venice acquired the building complex of the Teatro San Luca in 1956. 

Furthermore, there are hundreds of letters and contracts from famous comedians of the 17th and 18th centuries, including Antonio Sacchi and Giuseppe Imer; expense notes, inventories, property lists, legal documents, and registers of performed comedies.