site.btaBrian Cox to Bring Emergence Show to Sofia

Physicist Brian Cox will present his live show Emergence in Hall 1 of Sofia's National Palace of Culture (NDK) on Sunday evening during his second visit to Bulgaria.

Cox described it as the most ambitious live show he had ever written.

The visit, at the invitation of The Comedy Club Sofia, is part of his European tour, which includes Prague, Zurich, Bratislava, Krakow, Ljubljana, Zagreb, Istanbul, Bucharest and Athens.

"I have been very lucky to collaborate with a wonderful group of scientists, musicians, filmmakers and graphic designers to bring cosmology, biology, philosophy and history to the largest and most advanced LED screens, with the best sound and lighting I could find," Cox said. "I hope the show will be an all-encompassing experience and leave everyone, whether they love science, music or history, or simply contemplate the beauty of nature, with something new to think about," he added.

Audiences can expect science, music and striking stage effects that will offer a fresh view of the Universe and leave them with even more intriguing and exciting questions, the organizers said. They noted that Cox had appeared in many prominent BBC science programmes on radio and television over the past 15 years, from the internationally renowned series The Planets to the more recent Solar System.

The show's official description begins with a historical episode. In the winter of 1610, Johannes Kepler saw a snowflake and wondered why all snowflakes have six sides. Four centuries later, we know that this seemingly simple shape reflects a complex interplay of water molecules, atoms, quantum physics and the laws of nature. The snowflake is central to the show. Cox uses this apparently ordinary object to explore one of the biggest questions: how does nature create complexity?

Emergence explores this idea across a vast range of scales. At one end are the largest structures in the Universe, galaxies and the cosmic web connecting them; at the other are Earth's ecosystems and the human brain. In between are stars, planets, black holes, molecules and life. This allows Cox to ask a particularly striking question: how did a primate species that emerged on a small planet orbiting a fairly ordinary star eventually begin to understand the laws governing the Universe?

Cox does more than stand on stage and talk. He has worked with a team of scientists, musicians, filmmakers, visual artists and graphic designers. The show uses huge LED screens, sophisticated sound, lighting and visual effects to turn scientific ideas into a sensory experience. Emmy-winning director Nick Stacey and digital artist Erik Wernquist contributed to the visuals. Designer Peter Saville, also known for his work for Factory Records, created the project's visual identity.

His previous live show, Horizons, reached nearly half a million people worldwide. Cox followed that success with Emergence.