The project "Travels in ancient Rome" tells the Forum of Augustus and the Forum of Caesar starting from stones, fragments and columns present, with the use of cutting-edge technologies. Spectators are accompanied by the voice of Piero Angela and by magnificent films and reconstructions that show the places as they appeared in ancient Rome: an exciting representation and at the same time full of information with great historical and scientific rigor. The shows are curated by Piero Angela and Paco Lanciano. On April 21, on the occasion of the 2769th Christmas of Rome, the Eternal City celebrates its feast with free admission to the two shows and reservations required on 060608 (maximum 5 seats per phone call).
Thanks to special audio systems with headphones, spectators can listen to music, special effects and Piero Angela's story in 8 languages (Italian, English, French, Russian, Spanish, German, Chinese and Japanese).
FORUM OF CAESAR
The show inside the Forum of Caesar is itinerant. It is accessed from the staircase next to Trajan's Column and crosses Trajan's Forum on a specially built walkway. Through the underground gallery of the Imperial Forums, open to the public for the first time last year, one reaches the Forum of Caesar and continues thus up to the Roman Curia.
Piero Angela's story, accompanied by reconstructions and films, starts from the story of the excavations carried out for the construction of Via dei Fori Imperiali, when an army of 1500 masons, unskilled workers and workers was mobilized for an unprecedented operation: to raze a entire neighborhood and dig deep throughout the area to reach the level of ancient Rome. Then you enter the heart of history starting from the remains of the majestic Temple of Venus, wanted by Julius Caesar after his victory over Pompey and you can relive the excitement of life at the time in Rome, when officials, plebeians, soldiers, matrons, consuls and senators strolled under the porticoes of the Forum. Among the remaining colonnades the tabernae of the time reappear, ie the offices and shops of the Forum and, among these, the shop of a nummulario, a sort of exchange office of the time. At the time there was also a large public toilet of which curious remains remain. To build his Forum, Julius Caesar had to expropriate and demolish an entire neighborhood and the total cost was 100 million aurei, the equivalent of at least 300 million euros. Next to the Forum he had the Curia built, the new seat of the Roman Senate, a building that still exists and which, through a virtual reconstruction, can be seen as it looked at the time. In those years, while Rome's power was growing enormously, the Senate was greatly weakened and it was precisely in this situation of internal crisis that Cesare managed to obtain exceptional and perpetual powers. Thanks to Piero Angela's story, it will be possible to get to know this intelligent and ambitious man better, idolized by some, hated and feared by others.
FORUM OF AUGUSTUS
The story of the Forum of Augustus starts from the marbles still visible in the Forum and, through a multi-projection of lights, images, films and animations, Piero Angela's story focuses on the figure of Augustus, whose gigantic statue, 12 meters high, dominated the area next to the temple. With Augustus, Rome inaugurated a new period in its history: the imperial age was, in fact, that of the great rise which, within a century, brought Rome to reign over an empire that extended from present-day England to the borders with the present-day Iraq, comprising much of Europe, the Middle East and all of North Africa. These conquests led to the expansion not only of an empire, but also of a great civilization made up of culture, technology, juridical rules, art. Traces of that past still remain today in all areas of the Empire, with amphitheatres, baths, libraries, temples, roads. After Augustus, moreover, many other emperors left their mark in the Imperial Forums by building their own Forum. Rome at that time had more than a million inhabitants: no city in the world had ever had a population of those proportions; only London in the 800s reached this size. It was the great metropolis of antiquity: the capital of the economy, law, power and entertainment.
The Rome of Caesar and Augustus comes back to life in all its charm thanks to "Travels in Ancient Rome", 2 stories and 2 itineraries promoted by Roma Capitale - Capitoline Superintendency for Cultural Heritage and produced by Zètema Progetto Cultura. The conception and care are by Piero Angela and Paco Lanciano with the historical collaboration of Gaetano Capasso and with the Scientific Direction of the Capitoline Superintendence.
An initiative, which started in 2014 with the Forum of Augustus and expanded in 2015 with the Forum of Caesar, which also achieved extraordinary success last year with 158.000 spectators from all over the world and with a very high overall rating.
Image: Photo by Andrea Franceschini
