Corvidae. Glances of Species

Corvidae. Sguardi di specie is a TV series written for La Fabbrica del Mondo, a television programme by Marco Paolini and Telmo Pievani aired on RAI 3.

The series now leaves the screen and enters the theater, with three seasons in which a flock of ravens gives a different perspective on the damage we, the human species, have done to the Planet and on the possibilities we have to repair it.

Audiences will be able to see again, this time in the theater, the episodes of the first season that aired on RAI 3, inspired by the topics that Marco Paolini and Telmo Pievani addressed during the show. Furthermore, the new episodes forming seasons two and three will echo the thinking of anthropologist Anna Tsing, biologist Lynn Margulis, philosopher Bruno Latour and elaborate on the notion of affective ecology proposed by Donna Haraway in her book Staying with the Trouble.

Corvidae. Sguardi di specie questions the possibility of achieving a new, sustainable harmony between nature and progress, through the comedic and disenchanted point of view of a flock of mechanic ravens.

The scene, conceived by set designer Paola Villani, allows the ravens to be maneuvered in plain sight through a system of joysticks and bicycle brake cables.

The show is produced by a network of major institutions including Piccolo Teatro di Milano and CSS Teatro stabile di innovazione del Friuli Venezia Giulia, led by MUSE - Museo delle Scienze di Trento, which chose to premiere the show on the occasion of its 10th birthday, on the 22nd of July 2023, on a dedicated stage set up in the museum's park.

MUSE also made its experts available to the artistic team: scientists, biologists, paleontologists, ornithologists, and specialists in science communication supported the writing of the piece with insights and research suggestions.

Today, more than ever, the scientific world needs to establish alliances with other disciplines to effectively communicate the issue of global warming and to push us to collective action to limit its worse effects. Through literature, cinema and theater, the art world is also involved in this challenge. Together with MUSE, we have started a research journey focusing on such issues; through this new collaboration, the Science Museum has become for us not just a place of knowledge dissemination, but also a home for artistic creation.

The TV programme La Fabbrica del Mondo was a journey into the contemporary world led by two experts in their respective fields: Marco Paolini, a master of storytelling, and Telmo Pievani, a philosopher of science.

Each episode opened up new questions that showed how issues such as climate change and the exploitation of natural resources are manifested in our everyday lives. Exploring a diversity of objects and locations, stories about evolution, crises and opportunities in the face of major global challenges unfolded.

Alongside the two protagonists, there were in-depth discussions with special guests such as David Quammen, author of Spillover, and Barbara Mazzolai, creator of plantoide, the world's first plant-robot capable of reproducing the behavior of roots, as well as linguist Noam Chomsky, economist Mariana Mazzucato, and historian of science Naomi Oreskes.

Agenda

05/02/25, 21:00
CORVIDAE. SGUARDI DI SPECIE
Cascina (PI), Italy
07/02/25, 21:00
CORVIDAE. SGUARDI DI SPECIE
Vicenza, Italy
12/03/25, 21:00
CORVIDAE. SGUARDI DI SPECIE
Casalgrande (RE), Italy
14/03/25, 21:00
CORVIDAE. SGUARDI DI SPECIE
Monza, Italy
22/05/25, 19:00
CORVIDAE. SGUARDI DI SPECIE
Aria – Festival di Teatro dell’Università dell’Aquila e dell’Accademia di Belle Arti dell’Aquila
L’Aquila, Italy
19/06/25 - 21/06/25, 20:00
CORVIDAE. SGUARDI DI SPECIE
Parigi, France

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Pics

credits

by and with Marta Cuscunà

animatronic design and construction Paola Villani

assistant director and technical direction Marco Rogante

dramaturg Giacomo Raffaelli

video scenography Massimo Racozzi

graphic design Carlotta Amantini

costumes Chiara Venturini

live execution of light, video and sound Marco Rogante

scientific consulting MUSE – Museo delle Scienze di Trento

organisation Laura Marinelli, Miriam Paschini

distribution Jean-François Mathieu

stage photos Daniele Borghello

originally written for La Fabbrica del Mondo by Marco Paolini and Telmo Pievani, RAI 3

co-production Etnorama – Cultura per nuovi ecosistemi; CSS Teatro stabile di innovazione del Friuli Venezia Giulia; MUSE – Museo delle Scienze; Piccolo Teatro di Milano – Teatro d’Europa; Tinaos

animatronic crows are originally part of the scenography of Il canto della caduta

co-production Centrale Fies; CSS Teatro stabile di innovazione del Friuli Venezia Giulia; Teatro Stabile di Torino; São Luiz Teatro Municipal | Lisbona

technical suppliers igus® innovazione con i tecnopolimeri; Marta s.r.l. forniture per l’industria