The grandeur of this optical theatre is a narrative device which summarizes the military situation, the objectives and the strategies of the battle arrays, carried out in the region on the eve of the assault on Cassino. The setting is at night and is dominated by the Abbey of Montecassino. Two colonels, a German and an American, relate their military choices in this region. Their presentation is accompanied by the sound of brass, which creates a strong military atmosphere, as well as the War Requiem I movement by Britten. Opposite, a raised image of a map of Italy traces the three German defensive lines.