Villa and garden Garzoni in Collodi. Theater of theaters

The Garzoni villa and garden in Collodi represent a unique and com-plex work, the result of centuries of history, art and symbolism. The nar rative is developed on three interpretative levels: literal, with historical reconstruction through sources and testimonies, allegorical, inspired by theatrical metaphor, and mystical, with the search for higher truths, expressed above all by Ottaviano Diodati, architect and playwright of the eighteenth century. The site, originally a fortress, was transformed into a scenographic system where villa and garden, although located on different levels due to their separation by a natural gorge, were visually unified thanks to ingenious perspective artifices, such as the interven tion by Muzio Oddi who created a corner escape to break the geometric rigidity and give harmony. The garden, with its terraces, fountains and statues, is not only a landscape work of art but also an open-air theat er, full of symbols and mythologies, where every element-from plants to sculptures takes on a narrative role. The work of Diodati presents an encyclopedic and allegorical reading of the garden, where arts are intertwined and nature itself becomes a spectacle. This vision has fasci nated travelers and scholars from the eighteenth century to today, whe recognize the site not only as a Baroque masterpiece, but also a place where wonder becomes thought and the garden becomes a theatrical and spiritual experience.

MARIA ADRIANA GIUSTL, former Full Professor of Restoration at the Poly technic University of Turin, specializes in cultural heritage conservation and restoration, with particular attention to historical gardens, and has published several hundred essays and monographs. Member of the Na-tional Collodi Foundation’s Board of Directors and curator of the Gar zoni garden, part of the European Route of Historic Gardens (ERHG), she is also scientific committee member of the Italian Parks and Gardens Association (APGIJ