Historical Archives
Till a short while ago, Passion historical archives were almost non-existent, since only few documentations, concerning mainly nineteenth century and latest editions, composed them. Nowadays, the archives have attained to a remarkable extent. Their preparation required a long, patient, arduous research work, to find out in the village families photos and writings to integrate the limited pre-existing documentations. The archives were primarily kept in people's hearts and in family dearest memories: when asked, by me and other insiders, the inhabitants enthusiastically put at our disposal some archive materials of outstanding interest.
The research has also involved local bodies' archives: they developed their "own history", or better "our history", in a very interesting and continuous collaboration with the popular Theatre. The event profits, given during more than a century of local history to Sordevolo charitable institutions, may be defined "from the cradle to the rest": nursery school, school, workers' society, rest home, local roads, etc. In 1909, the Passion Committee in charge at the time, gave a considerable contribution to Messina's earthquake victims, broadening solidarity out of Biella's territory, quite to underline, as Italians, our common native land.
Nowadays, at the beginning of the third Christian millennium, with no personal merit or worth, we feel the responsibility to hand down to future generations the great religious, artistic and cultural heritage we received from our fathers. It is they who should be praised as, in very difficult times, they have kept alive and let revive such a tradition, generously engaging themselves both in organization and in theatrical and artistic setting.
A heartfelt thank-you to local, provincial and regional bodies, as well as to the private ones, who understood the importance of a popular event that involves and unifies a whole village. Through their help, we hope to hand down more and more successfully our popular theatre, which undoubtedly represents, for we Sordevolo's inhabitants, "a passion for the Passion".
