Culture of Milan nevertheless it retained a sort of central position in cultural debates. New ideas and movements from other countries of Europe were accepted and discussed: thus Realism and Naturalism gave birth to an Italian movement, "Verismo". The greatest "verista" novelist, Giovanni Verga, was born in Sicily but wrote his most important books in Milan. Milan is a major nationwide and international centre of the performing arts, most notably opera. Milan is the location of "La Scala" opera house, one of the most prestigious opera houses in the world, and throughout history has hosted the premieres of numerous operas, such as "Nabucco"
Royal Opera House Muscat Al Said has been always a fan of classical music and arts. In 2001, the sultan ordered the building of an opera house. Initially called 'House of Musical Arts', the name 'Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM)' was finally chosen. This opera house, which was built by Carillion Alawi, became the first in the world equipped with Radio Marconi's multimedia interactive display seatback system, Mode23. It was officially opened on October 12, 2011, with a production of the opera "Turandot", conducted by Spanish tenor Plácido Domingo. The opera house had an impressive first season, with performances by Plácido Domingo, Andrea Bocelli,