Founded in 1947 by Paolo Grassi and Giorgio Strehler, the Piccolo Teatro was the first resident public theatre company in Italy. The profoundly innovative approach adopted by the two young and enterprising directors, who pioneered the dominance of direction as opposed to the timeworn repetition of the “great actors” that had dominated the scene from the 19th century, made the Piccolo Teatro an important example for Italian theatre as a whole.Teatro Studio, whose theatrical programmes are entirely dedicated to young people and experimental theatre, was created by the renovation of the old Teatro Fossati, to an original design by architect Marco Zanuso: a cylindrical interior recalling the traditional Milan city dwelling pattern. Its unique design offers 330 seats with excellent visibility, all very close to the stage. The building includes the head office of the Piccolo Teatro school, founded by Giorgio Strehler.