Radiolab – "The Distance of the Moon"
WNYC Studios | April 16, 2013

Main Theme & Purpose

This Radiolab episode departs from its usual investigative format to present a live reading of Italo Calvino’s short story "The Distance of the Moon," performed by actor Liev Schreiber at Symphony Space in Manhattan. The episode weaves together science, myth, and fantasy, using Calvino’s narrative as a springboard for reflection on cosmic history, human longing, and the irresistible pull between worlds—both literal and metaphorical.

Episode Structure & Key Discussion Points

Intro & Context (01:25–07:15)

• Live Event Collaboration

  • Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich recount their participation in a live show with Selected Shorts, curating a night of stories read by renowned actors.
  • Stars in attendance include Jane Curtin, Kyra Sedgwick, and notably, Liev Schreiber, who performs the story featured in this episode.

• Science Background: Formation & Retreat of the Moon

  • The hosts discuss the leading scientific theory on the moon’s origin—a massive collision between Earth and a Mars-sized body (03:00).
  • The moon is gradually drifting away from Earth, at about a nanometer per second (“the speed that your fingernails grow”—03:28).

• About Italo Calvino & the Story

  • Brief biography of Calvino and the creative context for his Cosmicomics series (04:05).
  • Introduction to Qfwfq, the enigmatic narrator present throughout Cosmicomics stories (04:52).

The Reading: "The Distance of the Moon" (07:15–40:34)

Performed by Liev Schreiber; original text by Italo Calvino.

Story Highlights & Key Moments

• A Fantastical Premise

  • The story’s narrator, Qfwfq, reminisces about a time when the Moon was so close to Earth that people could reach it with ladders from the ocean (07:15–09:00).
  • In this alternate history, astronomy meets myth: tides are wild, and the moon brushes the sea, creating surreal ecological effects.

• Surreal Cosmic Imagery (Throughout the reading)

  • The sea and moon are animated, physical presences; entire ecosystems are depicted as being magnetically drawn between them.
  • Notable imagery: “The fish in [the water] violet colored, unable to resist the moon's attraction, rose to the surface, all of them, and so did the octopuses and the saffron medusas...” (08:53).

• The Practice of Harvesting "Moon Milk"

  • A whimsical process involving gathering a fictional "moon milk" — a composition of Earth’s organic detritus deposited on the moon (11:45–14:30).
  • The harvesting becomes a physical and emotional metaphor for yearning and unrequited love.

• Interpersonal Dynamics & Longing (15:00–25:00)

  • Central to the story is a complex love triangle: Qfwfq’s love for Captain Vhd Vhd’s wife, her infatuation with Qfwfq’s deaf cousin, and the cousin’s indifferent, near-mystical attachment to the moon.
  • Calvino blurs desire, gravitational pull, and longing:
    • "Hold on to us. Hold on to us. they shouted at me, and in all that groping sometimes I ended up by seizing one of Mrs. Vhd Vhd's breasts, which were round and firm and the contact was good and secure and had an attraction as strong as the moon's, or even stronger..." (21:40)
    • Qfwfq’s heartbreak is mirrored by the moon’s gradual retreat—a cosmic distancing and emotional one.

• The Moon Starts to Drift Away (32:00–35:00)

  • The characters realize, almost too late, that the moon is receding. This initiates a crisis, both logistical and existential.
  • Vivid moment: “...They looked up at us with frightened eyes, and from their mouths and ours at the same moment came a cry: 'The moon’s going away.'” (35:22)

• Separation, Exile, and Return (37:00–40:34)

  • Qfwfq and the captain’s wife find themselves stranded on the moon for a month, ultimately experiencing not the fulfillment of love but a hollow, homesick exile.
  • Lyrical and poignant:
    • “I was eager to return to the Earth, and I trembled at the fear of having lost it... Torn from its earthly soil, my love now knew only the heartrending nostalgia for what it lacked...” (38:20)
  • As the moon completes its orbit, innovative attempts to recover the stranded are described—bamboo poles reaching across the growing distance.
  • The deaf cousin’s final interaction with the moon is both tender and symbolic, aiding the moon’s escape, embodying acquiescence to the natural course of drifting apart.

• Bittersweet Resolution

  • The story ends with love unfulfilled. Qfwfq returns to Earth, forever gazing skyward, haunted by loss and the persistent memory of the woman and the closeness that once was, paralleling humanity’s eternal fascination with the moon.
  • Closing image: “She held the harp at her side and moved one hand now and then in slow arpeggios... when the moon has become that flat, remote circle, I still look for her as soon as the first sliver appears in the sky... She who makes the moon the moon, and whenever she is full, sets the dogs to howling all night long, and me with them." (40:28)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Moon’s Receding:
  • Jad Abumrad:
    “Ever since that moment, these two celestial orbs... have been very gradually, very, very slowly drifting away from each other at a rate of... about the speed that your fingernails grow.” (03:22)
• On Longing and Gravity:
  • Narrator/Qfwfq (as read by Liev Schreiber):
    “...the contact was good and secure and had an attraction as strong as the moon’s, or even stronger, especially if I managed as I plunged down to put my other arm around her hips, and with this I passed back into our world and fell with a thud into the bottom of the boat...” (21:48)
• On Exile and Loss:
  • Narrator/Qfwfq:
    “The fulfillment of my dream of love had lasted only that instant when we had been united, spinning between Earth and moon. Torn from its earthly soil, my love now knew only the heartrending nostalgia for what it lacked...” (38:33)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Live Event Setup / Story Context – 01:25–07:15
• Genesis of the Moon (Scientific Background) – 02:53–04:05
• About Calvino, Cosmicomics, & Main Characters – 04:05–05:14
• Reading: "The Distance of the Moon," Liev Schreiber – 07:15–40:34
  • Harvesting moon milk – 11:45–14:30
  • Emotional dynamics & yearning – 15:00–25:00
  • Moon retreat and crisis – 32:00–35:00
  • Exile on the moon – 37:00–40:34

Episode Tone and Style

True to Radiolab’s hallmark, the episode mixes science and humanism, imagination and physical law, carried by playful banter between Jad and Robert and the lyrical, surreal, and emotionally charged prose of Calvino, invested with new life by Liev Schreiber’s performance.

For Listeners New to This Episode

This episode is a haunting, whimsical, and poetic journey—a departure from Radiolab’s usual format, but very much in its spirit of curiosity and wonder. It’s a rich meditation on cosmic history, scientific possibility, and the personal myths we build around the night sky. The interplay of physical and emotional distance, of gravity and unattainable desire, lingers like moonlight—a story about separation that makes the heart, and the universe, feel strangely full.