text and direction Paola Rossi
historic consultation Angelo Chemin
with Carlo Presotto
video Mauro Zocchetta
music Coenobium Vocale

National Premiere 

In 1124 Pons of Melgueil, seventh abbot of Cluny, returning from the Holy Land, arrived at the mouth of the Brenta Valley where the road passed that Albert of Stade would describe in the mid-13th century as the itinerary connecting northern Germany with Rome, and there he founded the monastery dedicated to the Holy Cross and the Mother of God. Several monks from Cluny would ask to move to the cloister founded by Pons, which would see the Ezzelini family among its most important patrons. The Abbey of Campese thus represents an important spiritual and cultural crossroads for the territory of Bassano del Grappa and the Brenta Valley, and the extraordinary human and historical story of its founder is brought back to life with this new creation, set right in the monastery's brolo, the green space traditionally used as a vegetable garden, orchard, and garden that surrounded ancient abbeys. Through an engaging narrative, the destiny of this charismatic and controversial character will be retraced: from leading one of the most powerful monasteries in Europe to his dismissal, from his pilgrimage to the Holy Land to his arrival near Bassano del Grappa where he founded the new monastery. The stage design makes use of video projections curated by Mauro Zocchetta, which enhance the monastic architecture and enrich the narrative with suggestive, evocative images.

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