Teatro Ventidio Basso and The system of Italian-style condominio the
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
496 km
Riding-time estimate
8 h 19
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
496 km from Ascoli Piceno to Ascoli Piceno, about 8 h 19 of riding. The stops in between: Teatro dell'Aquila, Teatro Serpente Aureo, Teatro Lauro Rossi and The system of Italian-style condominio the. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 900 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Teatro Ventidio Basso
Ascoli Piceno is made of travertine, and in the right light the whole town looks like it has been carved from cream. The pale stone paves the great Piazza del Popolo and lines the arcades and towers, and the theatre is one of the quiet treats of a place that rarely makes the big lists. It is named after Ventidio Basso, a local boy who rose from humble beginnings to become a general under Mark Antony, defeated the Parthians in the first century BC and, so the story goes, was the first Roman to hold a triumph over them. The people of Ascoli remember it with civic pride.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Teatro Ventidio Basso is where the day begins. Next is Teatro dell'Aquila.
2. Teatro dell'Aquila
Fermo sits on a hill above the Adriatic, and its theatre is the jewel inside the town. The Teatro dell'Aquila was built in the late eighteenth century, designed by the architect Cosimo Morelli, and it is one of the largest and finest historic theatres in the Marche, a region that has an extraordinary number of them, almost every town having its own little opera house. Inside, tiers of gilded boxes rise in a horseshoe around the stalls, and the painted ceiling glows above. If you can catch a performance, or join a guided visit, do so.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Teatro dell'Aquila comes up about 73 km into the recorded legs. Next is Teatro Serpente Aureo.
3. Teatro Serpente Aureo
Offida sits on a ridge in the southern Marche, a small walled town of brick and stone looking across rolling hills towards the Adriatic in one direction and the Monti Sibillini in the other. In the arcaded town hall on the main square hides one of the region's many jewel-box theatres, the Serpente Aureo, the Golden Serpent, with its horseshoe of boxes, gilded decoration and painted ceiling. The Marche has dozens of these little opera houses, built when every proud town wanted its own stage, and this one is among the prettiest, small enough that you feel you are in someone's very ornate living room.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 123 km into the recorded legs you reach Teatro Serpente Aureo. Next is Teatro Lauro Rossi.
4. Teatro Lauro Rossi
Macerata is a hill town that takes its culture seriously, and the Teatro Lauro Rossi is the polished little jewel in the middle of it. Built in the second half of the eighteenth century in the heart of the old centre, it is a classic Italian horseshoe theatre with tiers of boxes in cream and gold, and it carries the name of Lauro Rossi, a nineteenth-century composer born in the town. If the doors are open, step in for a look; the room is intimate enough that you can imagine the whole town crammed in for a premiere, gossiping between acts.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Teatro Lauro Rossi, about halfway. Next is The system of Italian-style condominio the.
5. The system of Italian-style condominio the
The Marche has more historic theatres per head than almost anywhere in Italy. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, almost every hill town built its own opera house, often paid for by local families who then owned their boxes, like apartments in a condominium, and passed them down through generations. The result is a network of jewel box theatres in small towns, with tiers of boxes, painted ceilings and gilded stucco, many of them restored and still in use. San Severino Marche, a few kilometres away, has the Teatro Feronia, one of these, and the network of such theatres across the region has been put forward for World Heritage recognition.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 496 km.
Leg by leg
Teatro Ventidio Basso to Teatro dell'Aquila
Teatro Ventidio Basso → Teatro dell'Aquila is 73 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Teatro dell'Aquila to Teatro Serpente Aureo
Teatro dell'Aquila → Teatro Serpente Aureo is 50 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Teatro Serpente Aureo to Teatro Lauro Rossi
Teatro Serpente Aureo → Teatro Lauro Rossi is 86 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Teatro Lauro Rossi to The system of Italian-style condominio the
Teatro Lauro Rossi → The system of Italian-style condominio the is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The system of Italian-style condominio the to back through Teatro Lauro Rossi
The system of Italian-style condominio the → back through Teatro Lauro Rossi is 44 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Teatro Lauro Rossi to back through Teatro Serpente Aureo
back through Teatro Lauro Rossi → back through Teatro Serpente Aureo is 86 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Teatro Serpente Aureo to back through Teatro dell'Aquila
back through Teatro Serpente Aureo → back through Teatro dell'Aquila is 52 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Teatro dell'Aquila to Teatro Ventidio Basso
back through Teatro dell'Aquila → Teatro Ventidio Basso is 72 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.