Varese Observatory: the Galileo show arrives

Context

TL;DR

• Show at the Varese Observatory on Saturday, October 17
• The Corrado D'Elia theater company on stage
• After the play, observation of the Moon and Saturn
• Saturn also visible through the Galilean telescope replica

Key facts

• Event → Saturday, October 17
• Location → G.V. Schiaparelli Astronomical Observatory
• Show → «Galileo, Beyond the Stars»
• Company → Corrado D'Elia
• Area → Varese Campo dei Fiori
• After the play → astronomical observation session
• Celestial objects → Moon, Saturn and other celestial objects
• Historical instrument → replica of Galileo's telescope

On Saturday, October 17, the «G.V. Schiaparelli» Astronomical Observatory in Varese, at Campo dei Fiori, will host «Galileo, Beyond the Stars», the show by the Corrado D'Elia theater company. The company, active in Milan's major theaters, is coming to Varese for the first time with a work dedicated to the Italian scientist.

The event presents a theatrical narrative described as intimate and revolutionary, structured as a journey through science, art and freedom. The performance is hosted in a special venue, the G.V. Schiaparelli Astronomical Observatory in Varese Campo dei Fiori, and offers an unusual perspective on the figure of the great Italian astronomer.

The evening at the Observatory

The title of the show indicates a journey that goes beyond a simple biography. The narrative in fact explores Galileo from a particular perspective and places the theatrical story in a space dedicated to observing the sky.

The event will not end with the play. The program also includes an astronomical observation session, linking the theatrical story to the opportunity to look at the sky from the Varese venue. The session will take place at the end of the show and will be conducted using the Observatory's instruments.

For Corrado D'Elia, therefore, the event marks the first time this show about the Italian scientist comes to Varese. For the audience, the offering brings together theater and observation on the same evening, without separating the story dedicated to Galileo from the astronomical experience scheduled after the performance.

Operational details

Galileo portrayed on stage

Research, doubt and freedom

The core of the play is the question of who Galileo Galilei really was, beyond the myth of the genius, the heretic, and the man who dared to challenge heaven and earth. The story also questions the price of research and what lies behind the image of the scientist capable of changing our view of the universe.

The presentation of the show evokes the words «And yet it moves», whispered with determination and despair and, over the centuries, becoming a symbol of freedom of thought. This reference gives shape to a portrait that looks not only at Galileo’s public persona, but also at the questions and anxieties of the man.

Corrado D'Elia guides the audience in discovering a more human Galileo than ever. In the story, the scientist is first and foremost a man: a son, a father, a lover, a solitary and restless thinker. He is a person capable of marveling at the stars and endlessly questioning the meaning of the universe.

The narrative thus attempts to enter the soul of a complex and extraordinary character. His story is read through an inner struggle, in which the torment of the intellect is measured against dogma, and the need to survive comes into conflict with the instinct to seek the truth.

The picture presented is that of an era marked by the clash between science and faith, freedom and power, knowledge and fear. The company presents «Galileo, Beyond the Stars» as a journey into these contradictions, but also as the portrait of a man who forever changed the vision of the cosmos and existence, leaving a legacy still capable today of prompting those who contemplate it to question themselves.

Key points

Observation after the play

The Moon, Saturn and the replica of the telescope

At the end of the performance, the program will continue with an astronomical observation session through the Observatory's telescopes. Participants will be able to admire the Moon, the planet Saturn and several other celestial objects.

The initiative places alongside modern instruments a replica of the telescope made by Galileo Galilei in 1609. Saturn will also be visible through this instrument, allowing contemporary observation to be compared with the perspective of those who scrutinized the sky at the beginning of the 17th century.

The experience on offer concerns not only the object being observed, but also the characteristics of the instrument. The replica has limited capabilities and a restricted field of view, features that recreate the conditions of an observer in the early 1600s. With a telescope of this type, however, Galileo succeeded in making discoveries destined to change forever the way the universe was viewed.

The concluding session therefore takes the audience from the theatrical narrative to the practice of observation, with the opportunity to examine a replica of the Galilean instrument and the Observatory's telescopes. The Moon, Saturn and the other celestial objects will be the tangible continuation of the play dedicated to the Italian scientist.

Booking is mandatory to attend the event. The evening is therefore divided into two stages: first the performance by Corrado D'Elia's company, followed by the astronomical observation at the headquarters of the G.V. Schiaparelli Astronomical Observatory in Varese Campo dei Fiori.

Source: varesenoi.it