  
							
							  | 
                           
                          
                            
                                
                                  | 
									 
									
									The 16th edition of the Ferrari Finali 
									Mondiali ended with a spectacular twist 
									as two Prancing Horse cars made an 
									appearance during the Reina Sofia’s Palau 
									des Arts' performance of Opera Sinfonica 
									del Mediterraneo.  | 
                                 
                                
                                  | 
									 
									
									   | 
                                 
                                
                                    
									  | 
                                 
                              | 
                           
                          | 
                       
                     
					  
								
								The 
								16th edition of the Ferrari Finali Mondiali, 
								which was being held in Valencia, Spain, this 
								year for the first time, ended on Sunday night 
								with a spectacular twist as two Prancing Horse 
								sports cars made an appearance during the Palau 
								de les Arts Reina Sofía's evening performance of
								Opera Sinfonica del Mediterraneo. Thanks 
								to special choreography the two cars appeared to 
								be floating over the sea: a 599 GTB Fiorano HGTE 
								and a 458 Italia, the latest model from Ferrari. 
					
					The Palau de les 
					Arts Reina Sofía is world famous landmark building designed 
					by the Valencian architect Santiago Calatrava. Its sculpted 
					form is highly symbolic, looking like a ship stranded in the 
					old riverbed of the Turia River. This monumental building 
					has become a dynamic feature of the urban area. The 
					innovative architecture of this forty thousand square metre 
					building, seventy-five metres high, accommodates four venues 
					for opera, music, ballet, theatre, receptions and 
					conferences with platforms project at different levels with 
					passage ways and Mediterranean gardens. Access to the 
					different areas is provided by means of panoramic lifts and 
					staircases situated inside the porcelain sides of the 
					building. The contrast between the opaque porcelain and the 
					glass foyers produce ever-changing sensations when walking 
					about the theatre. 
					 
					The metal feather planted at the main entrance seems to 
					float over the structure. Only one point of support sustains 
					the plume over the almond-shaped building, leaving the 
					eastern end of the feather floating in mid-air, defying 
					gravity. Fine white concrete covers the large metal 
					structural supports of the building, while broken mosaic 
					tile (trencadís) has been used to decorate the 
					outer shells, walls and reflecting pools of the Palau. The 
					Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía is surrounded by more than 
					sixty thousand square metres of gardens, pathways, and 
					eleven thousand square metres of water in the reflecting 
					pools below. An elevated footbridge, fifty-six metres long, 
					situated at the western end of the building can be reached 
					by two different stairways leading to the Main Entrance and 
					Box Office. 
					
					Ferrari Chairman 
					Luca di Montezemolo and the President of the Comunitat 
					Valenciana Fernando Camps greeted the participants in 
					Valencia’s week of shows and sports events. The audience in 
					the stalls of the Reina Sofia’s Palau des Arts gave warm 
					applause to Felipe Massa when he entered the theatre, while 
					the Brazilian driver didn’t want to miss this spectacular 
					event together with new third driver Giancarlo Fisichella 
					and the Scuderia Ferrari test drivers Marc Gené and Luca 
					Badoer. 
   |