An overflow crowd filled American Players Touchstone Theater on the evening of July 20 for a unique event combining history of astronomy, an entertaining play about Galileo and his daughter, and live music from Galileo's own family and era.
This public show was the highlight of "Galileo Under Wisconsin Skies", a festive four-day event organized by the UW-Madison Department of Astronomy and the UW Foundation.
Inspired by the International Year of Astronomy - which in 2009 commemorates the 400th anniversary of Galileo's earliest discoveries - members of the UW-Madison Theater and Drama Department presented Rick Foster's play "Starry Messenger" directed by Talish Barrow.
The play features Galileo himself (played by William Bolz) and his daughter (Kaitlin Elizabeth Olsen) as they recount and explain his great work and eventful career.
- Attendees from the "Galileo Under Wisconsin Skies" show off their telescopes.
As an introduction, Professor Michael Shank, of the UW-Madison Department of History of Science, offered a short talk that led directly into the play itself, while the historical mood was set perfectly by a concert of historical music under the direction of Professor Paul Rowe of the UW-Madison School of Music.
A lively conversation with the audience followed the show, and then all were treated to sky viewing and educational exhibits (moon rocks and liquid nitrogen!) provided by UW astronomers, amateur astronomers of Iowa County and UW Space Place.