one; Portcullis: sliding flat scene that rose rapidly from underneath the stage using counterweights. These innovations created surprising and marvelous illusionistic effects, which came to be known as scènes à l'italienne. In his researches on perspective for the sets, he defined the so-called œil du prince ("the eye of the prince"), as the ideal seat in the theatre's audience that affords the best possible perspective on the sets . In a chapter in his book, he describes ‘How to Place the Prince's Seat’, where ‘all the objects in the scene appear better... than from any other place’. It is located approximately in the middle of the seventh row and it is a coveted place. Besides his important work in theatrical stage engineering, Sabbatini participated also as an architect and decorator in several of Pesaro's buildings, such as in the Palazzo Ducale, built by Duke Francesco Maria II della Rovere. Inside this building, he projected and built the Vecchio Teatro di Corte (old court theatre), which was later demolished. Later, he was commissioned by a group of Pesaro citizens to build the new Teatro del Sole (Sun Theater), which was inaugurated in 1637. Sabbatini was involved in the project of the new sea port of Pesaro and contributed to some works of art, such as in the design of three articulated panels painted by Giovanni Giacomo Pandolfi in the Nome di Dio oratory, also in Pesaro. References Sabbattini, Nicola (1638). Pratica di fabricar scene e machine ne' teatri [Manual for Constructing Theatrical Scenes and Machines]. Ravenna. . View at Internet Archive. On-line description at Martayan Lan Rare Books. Hewitt, Barnard, editor (1958). The Renaissance Stage: Documents of Serlio, Sabbattini and Furtenbach. Coral Gables, Florida: University of Miami Press. . "Nicola Sabbatini". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. External links History of Theatrical Illumination. Wow Essays. Early Illusionistic Scene Changes. In: The Development of Scenic Spectacle. This excellent article shows 5 of the major Sabbatini's inventions, with QuickTime animations and descriptions. 1574 births 1654 deaths People from Pesaro Italian Baroque architects History of theatre