Standing in Novellara’s main square, the Chiesa Collegiata di Santo Stefano (Collegiate Church of Saint Stephen) was designed to convey splendor and grandeur. Faithful to the traditional layout of ancient churches, the original project placed the apse to the east: construction began in 1512, but the works were never completed.

In 1567, Alfonso I Gonzaga, wishing to celebrate his marriage to Vittoria da Capua, commissioned the construction of a new church on the same site, this time to a design by Lelio Orsi, with the façade facing the square. About half a century later, the building was finally completed. The bell tower was raised under Camillo II in 1616. The interior follows a longitudinal Latin-cross plan, with a single nave flanked by four chapels on each side. The most significant among them are the Chapel of the Santo Sacramento (Holy Sacrament), on the right, and the Chapel of the Beata Vergine del Rosario (Blessed Virgin of the Rosary), on the left.

On the pilaster at the crossing between the nave and transept lies the tombstone of Lelio Orsi, accompanied by the family’s coat of arms. From the two presbytery columns hang the portraits of Camillo I Gonzaga and his wife Barbara Borromeo. The most notable artworks preserved in the church were created by disciples of Lelio Orsi - including Pietro Maria Bagnatore, Mario Lodi, and Borbone - while particularly remarkable is the marble baptistery donated in 1752 by Donna Ricciarda, sister of the last Count of Novellara.