Meraviglia!

Preview: ROMAEUROPA FESTIVAL 2018 (IT) – NOV 2018
On tour:  2020 – 2024

Cast and crew: 7 (5 actors)
Running time: 60 min. approx.
Venue: Show suitable for unconventional venue.

Language: No Text >> non-verbal show
Techniques: Physical theatre / Dance / Stage machinery and large moving objects
Audience: Best for approx. 700 people. It can host up to 1,000 audience members.
Ideal layout: Frontal / Semicircular

Target: Any age bracket. Suitable for an international audience.
Directed by: Margò Paciotti
Intellectual property rights: ONDADURTO TEATRO / Lorenzo Pasquali and Margò Paciotti

Cast: Valerio Marinaro, Giorgia Marras, Sara Mennella, Lorenzo Pasquali and Dario Vandelli.

Machinery: Lorenzo Pasquali and Massimo Carsetti
Construction of machinery: Dario Vandelli

Original Music: Stefano Saletti
Costumes Design: K.B. Project
Light and Video design: Roberto Mazzaro

International Consultancy: Ute Classen Kulturmanagement – Germany

“The truth is, when I was born, it was already a barren concrete jungle and that’s where I would play. The water was already polluted, the fires already lit, the walls already built”.

Patches of sand peeking through with an air of resignation in what looks like a dumping ground littered with scattered, bent beach umbrellas, dry lipstick-stained cigarette butts, faded red-and-white wooden huts with broken boards swinging from rusty nails. And – lying on this open landfill – you, almost feeling like you yourself were a piece of plastic left to rot in that thick and greasy sunlight that seems to feed on the emissions given off by the rubbish heap.
Gusts of air carry the stench of putrefaction and the faint sounds of the sea and birds – the sharks of the sky – flying low to catch prey, alive or (most likely) dead. But destruction is never idle – it’s a greedy, swift, sharp-toothed rat that always finds its way through and devours slowly but relentlessly. 

Destruction changes everything and this story is no exception.
A girl opens her eyes; maybe she has just woken up, maybe…
A surreal figure is standing next to her and he will lead her to discover the true meaning of nature, which has been lost through the cycle of the seasons.

Starting with spring, she will rediscover her sense of amazement as she watches a flower bloom, as she witnesses the changing colours of a landscape being reborn.
As she follows the carefree dance of fluffy white clouds, she will end up under the scorching sun of the bustling summer. Here, in the din of sounds created by the euphoria of summer, she will rediscover the immense pleasure that comes from the sensation of a drop of water on her hot skin.
Then, the sun-drenched racket gives way to the languid noises of a landscape preparing for slumber, to rest, after the wild excesses of summer.
The trees are transformed into spirits that walk with our traveller in the gloomy autumn atmosphere. Finally, winter, calm and silent, accompanied by a singing spirit, leaves her with unanswered questions, but with a new awareness. 

Wonder can lead us to appreciate the small things life gives us and to take pride and joy in what we can give back in return.
Although we may find ourselves in a seemingly hopeless land of desolation and destruction, we can still turn things around and change the world we live in by grasping any opportunity to feel awe before the spirit and generosity of nature…

Each us can become the driving force of this change – if we don’t, we will all share the responsibility of destroying the planet.
We don’t know how much time is left to fix the problem before it’s too late. The choice is yours – it is ours – so make it!

MUSIC:
The original music, composed by Stefano Saletti, was inspired by a question: is it possible to get music from raw materials?
Is iron really such a rough material that it can be played through violence?
What sound would the vibration of a steel plate produce?
How would simple electric cable tubes sound? What if all these materials began to sing?

… WONDER! 
For every material, a sound, and each sound creates an imaginary world, a impression, a colour or a story. The sound used in the show will help immerse the spectator in a number of imaginary worlds linked to the wonders of nature.
The soundtrack also makes use of the magical and evocative tune of the “Four Seasons”, recomposed by Max Richter.

COSTUMES:
The voyage of discovery in MERAVIGLIA!, which is aimed at capturing the imagination, is greatly helped by the costumes inspired by nature, and their surreal shapes and structures help to outline the space.
The costumes themselves become true performative bodies, creating volume, lines of movement, solids and voids, which amplify, deform and fragment the presence of the performers acting on stage.
These costumes become dancing architectural features that enhance the piece and further the investigation of the themes portrayed. To ensure their ideas were brought to life on stage, the company forged an important collaboration with the visionary duo, K.B. Project, specially for the show.

VIDEO IMAGES AND GRAPHICS:
The use of video projections in the show was influenced by the desire to strike a balance between different media.
Closely connected to the dramaturgical structure, video projections are an integral part of the show, just as the music, actors and machinery are.
The projection invades different spaces, playing with solids and voids: the images are dismantled, transformed, multiplied, never the same.
Rather than a fixed image on static and predetermined screens, here video becomes a dynamic projection in movement and in continuous transformation.

Il Messaggero – Italy
(“A surreal journey and a dreamlike vision that will take the audience back in time, filled with feelings of awe and, of course, wonder.”)

Corriere della Sera – Italy
“A dreamlike and surreal journey that will lead you to re-discover the magnificence of nature. It leads the audience to reinterpret their understanding of environmentalism through the lenses of the performing arts…” 

Mai Dire Film (Online)
“Surreal characters, enormous stage machinery and evocative scenes that will touch you deeply.”
“Ondadurto manages to successfully blend traditional arts – such as street theatre, circus, dance, narrative theatre – with innovation and high technology, such as lighting design and incredible mobile machinery.”

Il Messaggero – Italy
“… an dreamlike trip through the depths of the mysteries of the natural world.”