BENEATH THE CATHEDRAL

Tour

Paths of Light is a tour beneath Siena Cathedral to explore the fabulous architectural setting of the Oratorio dei SS. Giovannino e Gennaro.

After being guided through the tunnels leading from the Baptistry to the Oratory, visitors are accompanied into the 17th century body of the oratory to witness an immersive cultural performance in 3D video-mapping.

The leading players in the performance are the people of Siena and their history. An instrumental cord and an ideal cord unite the citizens, inviting them to display Con-cord, urging them towards a union of hearts. Political concord has a beneficial impact on the government of the city and this is reflected in its great works.

The cord metaphorically links the Cathedral, symbolising the sentiment of worship, with the pivotal role of the Palazzo Pubblico, the centre of civic government and the Hall of the Nine with its allegories frescoed by Ambrogio Lorenzetti.
The dream starts in the Middle Ages but it extends on down to our own day: the hope is that of a rebirth through Wisdom inspiring Justice and leading to Concord, the "leitmotif" of the performance. The industriousness of the citizens in this "welfare state" is to be found in the craftsmen's workshops of yesterday and today. The personalities of the past continue to speak in our own time. The music and voice of Siena accompany the images of passing time scanned by clocks and bells in an embrace that reaches out to the audience seated in the oratory pews.