The new urban centre of the late nineteenth century was consolidated precisely in this area where Corso Francesco Giuseppe (now Corso Italia) intersected Via del Teatro, now Via Garibaldi, on the right, and Via Alvarez, now Via Diaz, on the left, continuing as Via Giardino.

The Teatro di Società, built in 1740 and rebuilt after a fire in 1799, was renamed the "Giuseppe Verdi" in 1901. In November 1915, it was hit by a bomb that irreparably damaged its beautiful oval ceiling, frescoed in 1899 by Eugenio Scomparini. The nearby Caffè del Teatro, inaugurated in July 1781 and radically restored in 1900 by architect Ruggero Berlam, was requisitioned by the military during the conflict and became the Soldatenheim, or Soldier's Home.