The Teatro Comunale stands in the centre of the city, in corso Canalgrande, a street lined on both sides with mainly XVIII Century buildings which can justly claim to be one of Modena's most attractive thoroughfares. On evenings when performances are to take place, the building is lit up so that it stands out clearly as a focal point in the city's cultural life. Designed by Vandelli, the architect of the Este dukes, the theatre was opened in 1841. Its facade features a large arcade topped by a balustrade on marble columns. The moulded decorations on the outside, by L. Righi, pay homage to artistic activities in the Modena area; the pediment displays the Presiding Genius of Modena, holding a torch and resting his other hand on the city's coat of arms. The theatre, which seats 1200, offers seasons of opera, classical music and ballet running from October to May. Modena's play-goers are served by the Teatro Storchi, the city's other XIX Century theatre, built between 1885 and 1888 to the design of the architect V. Maestri. It stands a few hundred metres from the Teatro Comunale, on the piazza now known as Largo Garibaldi, overlooking the fountain by Graziosi portraying the Secchia and Panaro rivers. After radical renovation, the Teatro Storchi has become a prestige cultural centre of equal importance with the Teatro Comunale. In 1991 it became the base for ERT (Emilia Romagna Teatro), one of Italy's fourteen permanent theatre companies. The different uses of the two public theatres make it possible to offer a wider range of types of entertainment and have also given opera fans a specific venue for enjoying the "bel canto" tradition which has produced the tenor Luciano Pavarotti and the soprano Mirella Freni, both singers of world renown. Another famous soprano, Raina Kabaivanska, has also been resident in Modena for some time.