Teatro Farnese, Parma, Italy

www.travelsignp... : Join Tony and Helen to see the world's first proscenium arch at the Teatro Farnese, Parma, where Margareta de Medici married the Duke of Parma.
"This is the Teatro Farnese, rebuilt after the Americans destroyed it with a bomb in the Second World War. Unfortunately, this lens is simply not wide enough to capture all of this, but I'll try to give you an idea.
Helen and I are the only ones here at the moment, and this is reputedly the world's first proscenium arch. Of course, it's a reproduction, but it was here that they've first supposed to have used the proscenium arch to let the audience see the action, as it were through a window, rather than in the round as in Shakespeare's theatre. This was built in 1618, the original one, so you can judge. People used to sit all around the stage.
Anyway, let's walk up and have a look at the view from the stage.
Well, on the way up, here are some of the original decorations.
I believe they didn't decide to rebuld it until 1956.
And up here, this is the coat of arms of the Duke of Parma.
Now you'll notice the stage has forced perspective.
I'm walking up a long slope to the stage, which we're on now, but the stage still slopes up to the rear, which would allow the forced perspective.
And here - sorry about that unevenness - is a view, as best I can give it you, from centre stage, under the proscenium arch.
Well, I've just walked downstage - as far as I can - away from the arch, and you can now see it, as it were. They haven't, of course, replaced all the decorations or the ceiling, in fact.
Now backstage, pretty bare, and I'll walk forward now, downstage - upstage, sorry - until you can see the effect.
[floorboards creak]
Bit creaky, isn't it?
Now it's set up, interestingly, for a concert, with the orchestra at the other side.
Now that might seem a bit stupid, given the acoustics.
You should be able to hear this, perfectly clearly. There's no echo whatsoever, in spite of the roof - I'll try to pan up to the roof - you'll see the roof has not been restored. In spite of that, the acoustics are very dead, there's not a lot of sound. Helen was down at the far end there, where the orchestra is now, and she says that the sound (from the stage) was very clear.
And even the restoration is pretty impressive, you have to admit.
I'll just move in a bit.
The audience was always invited, and it was used for the marriage of Margareta de Medici and the Duke, and in fact was used for weddings afterwards.
Pretty impressive place for a wedding, isn't it?
Well, there we are: Teatro Farnese.
Of course, you would normally have entered through these large doors.
Unfortunately, I can't go into the rear of the theatre, because that bit's blocked off, but I think this is more than enough to give you an impression of this magnificent place."
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