Impressed by the digital works, Tarchini commissioned Gambardella to create something extraordinary: an immersive, digital, modern space at the FoxTown in Mendrisio.

Gambardella, however, realises that this space must be much more than a mere technological exhibition. It must be a different and surprising place, capable of uniting science and art in a harmonious marriage, capable of stimulating reflection and the senses.

This is why it involves the Compagnia Finzi Pasca, one of the world's leading independent art companies, in the persons of Hugo Gargiulo and Maria Bonzanigo, masters in the art of knowing how to interpret and combine dreamlike environments with digital solutions. Among their greatest successes are three Olympic ceremonies and two shows for Cirque du Soleil.

The initial stages of the project are exciting: spaces, rooms, equipment and content take shape, while the vision of the OLTRE hall, a place dedicated to performances, exhibitions and displays, becomes clearer and clearer.

In summer 2023, the team is enriched with new talent: artisans, professionals and artists come together to bring to life this extraordinary vision of a space where 'nothing is as it seems'.

The distinctive poetics of the Compagnia Finzi Pasca took shape around the concepts of 'Theatre of the Caress' and 'Invisible Gesture'. Developed over 40 years of experience, these concepts have consolidated a unique aesthetic and a very personal style of creation and production, as well as a training philosophy for the actor, the acrobat, the musician, the dancer and the technician: a way of inhabiting space.

Theatre, dance, acrobatics, circus, opera and documentary: everything comes together in the work of the Compagnia Finzi Pasca.

Compagnia Finzi Pasca was founded by Antonio Vergamini, Daniele Finzi Pasca, Hugo Gargiulo, Julie Hamelin and Maria Bonzanigo in 2011, taking up the work developed by Teatro Sunil (1983) and Inlevitas.

Based in Lugano (Switzerland), Compagnia Finzi Pasca is one of the world's leading independent arts companies. In the course of its history, it has created and produced over 40 shows in which theatre, circus, dance and music meet, from 1983 to the present day.

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(Montevideo, Uruguay) co-founder of the Compagnia Finzi Pasca. Set designer, actor, writer and director.

Parallel to his studies in architecture in Montevideo, Hugo underwent theatre training. He participated in several shows in Uruguay and in 1994 he met Daniele Finzi Pasca and the aesthetics of the 'Theatre of the Caress'. Shortly afterwards, he moved to Switzerland and was immediately involved in the Teatro Sunil company, participating in several shows as actor, director and set designer. In 2011, together with Antonio Vergamini, Daniele Finzi Pasca, Julie Hamelin Finzi and Maria Bonzanigo, he founded the Compagnia Finzi Pasca.

He is in the creative team of several international productions such as Corteo (Cirque du Soleil), the Closing Ceremony of the 2006 Olympic Games in Turin; set designer of the Closing Ceremonies of the Olympics and Opening Ceremonies of the Paralympic Games in Sochi 2014, the Fête des Vignerons 2019, for which he is also the arena designer. Since 2007, Hugo has designed the sets for the Company's productions such as Nebbia, Donka, La Verità, Per Te, Bianco su Bianco, Luna Park, Nuda, as well as several operas including Pagliacci and Carmen at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, Einstein on the Beach and María de Buenos Aires at the Grand Théâtre de Génève, Les Contes d'Hoffmann at the Staatsoper Hamburg.

True to his eclectic spirit, he writes fiction and coordinates various events in Switzerland and abroad, including workshops on acting, lectures and the Company's LAB project. 

(Lausanne, Switzerland) co-founder of the Compagnia Finzi Pasca. Composer and choreographer.

Maria Bonzanigo composes music and choreography for dance, theatre, opera, major events, circus, film, soloists and chamber ensembles, orchestra and choir. He studied composition with Paul Glass and dance, dance pedagogy and choreography with Rosalia Chladek. With Daniele Finzi Pasca, whom he met in 1984, he developed a theatrical technique that they called 'Theatre of the Caress' and founded the company Teatro Sunil. In 2011, he co-founded the Compagnia Finzi Pasca. The main projects in which she participates as a creator are: Cirque du Soleil parade, the Closing Ceremony of the Turin 2006 Olympic Games, Montréal Avudo, the Fête des Vignerons 2019, for which she was musical director and main composer.

Among the Compagnia Finzi Pasca's various productions are the shows Donka, La Verità, Per te and Nebbia, for whose music she received the Gascon-Roux Award from the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde in Montréal. For cinema, he wrote the original music for Oro verde and L'afrique des Femmes by Mohammed Soudani and the documentary on CERN, Il senso della bellezza by Valerio Jalongo. She signed the choreographies for the operas Pagliacci and Carmen Teatro San Carlo in Naples, Les contes d'Hoffmann at the Staatsoper Hamburg, Einstein on the Beach and María de Buenos Aires at the Grand Théâtre de Genève. 

In 2022 Maria was awarded the Culture Merit Prize by the City of Bellinzona 'in recognition of her work as a choreographer and composer, with an important presence in the field of cinema thanks to her relevant soundtracks for films and documentaries. Particular praise is due to her work - also recognised and appreciated worldwide - in the Compagnia Finzi Pasca of which she is a co-founder'.

Luca Maria Gambardella (1962) is a prominent figure with a multifaceted vocation and a deep interest in science, industry and art. After earning a degree and doctorate in computer science, he cultivated a fervent passion for artificial intelligence, which began in his early years of study. This interest found full expression when he joined the Dalle Molle Institute for Artificial Intelligence Studies (IDSIA USI-SUPSI) in 1988, where he successfully served as director for a period of 25 years, until 2020. During his tenure, he contributed significantly to the development of revolutionary algorithms to optimise logistics, inspired by the behaviour of ants, and published more than 300 scientific articles, rising to the rankings of the world's best researchers. Currently, at the Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) in Lugano, he holds the position of Vice Rector for Innovation and Corporate Relations, as well as being Full Professor of Artificial Intelligence in the Faculty of Informatics and Co-Director of the Master of Artificial Intelligence.

In the industrial sector, he co-founded Artificialy SA in Lugano in 2020, a pioneering company in the field of artificial intelligence, bringing innovation and technology to the market.

In the artistic field, Gambardella has demonstrated his creativity and vision through unique and innovative works.

Luca Maria Gambardella's extraordinary career is a tangible example of multidisciplinary excellence and continues to inspire in its many facets.