In 1568 Cipriano Piccolopasso, an architect and a painter, said that he had discovered an ideal place to live for “its clear and healthy air” and in 1960 the American anthropologist Sydel Silverman dubbed it “the Paradise lost.”
But although this town in Western Umbria, ten kilometers North of Todi, contains the Chiesa di Santa Illuminata, restored in the 1800′s and the Chiesa Parrocchiale dei Santi Filippo e Giacomo, it is most famous for its theatre, the Teatro della Concordia.
The Teatro della Concordia, considered the smallest in the world (two floors of boxes and 37 pit stalls), was built in 1808 under Napoleonic occupation by some noble local families. Later in 1892, the theatre was frescoed by the 14-year-old Livio Agresti.
The original structure has been restored a few times; the last work began after a period of complete abandonment in the 50s and 60s. Its restoration was completed in the 1990s and today allows public access for visits and performances, which are always sold out!
– Contributed by Evanne Brandon Diner (see bio), chronicler of local village life in Northern Lazio, and property restoration and purchasing consultant. www.lavventuraitalia.com
