ANTRO - Phlegraean Fields Archaeological Park Festival

ANTRO, the festival bringing the Phlegraean Fields archaeological sites to life

ANTRO is the summer festival conceived and produced by the Phlegraean Fields Archaeological Park, the authority protecting some of the most extraordinary sites in Campania, located in the Municipality of Pozzuoli and surrounding Phlegraean towns in the Province of Naples. Launched in 2021 under the title "One hundred paths, one hundred gates, one hundred voices," the event brings theatre, music, dance, cinema, and cultural outreach into monuments usually visited only by day. The core idea is simple: preservation alone is not enough; heritage truly lives when it is once again inhabited by people.

The name evokes the grotto of the Cumaean Sibyl, the oracular cave sung by Virgil in the sixth book of the Aeneid—a text the festival draws upon each year to select its theme. This choice aligns with the identity of the Phlegraean Fields, a land of volcanoes, myths, and gateways to the underworld, where archaeology and legend have overlapped for millennia.

The venues: Baia, Cumae, and the Flavian Amphitheatre

The festival is spread across several park sites, which serve as both audience seating and scenery:

• Aragonese Castle of Baia — the heart of the festival, featuring a terrace overlooking the gulf and the Phlegraean Fields Archaeological Museum;
• Archaeological Park of Cumae — the oldest Greek colony in the West, home to the Sibyl's grotto that gives the festival its name;
• Flavian Amphitheatre of Pozzuoli — the Roman arena in the city centre, host to gladiator re-enactments;
• Stadium of Antoninus Pius and Baths of Baia — featured primarily in the early editions.

A multidisciplinary programme

ANTRO alternates between diverse formats over just a few evenings: theatrical performances by Campanian companies, dance and fire shows, concerts, film screenings with live musical accompaniment, book presentations, large-scale puppet theatre, and scientific lectures held by archaeologists and researchers. Events generally take place in the evening, around 9 PM, when the temperature cools and the illuminated monuments offer their most evocative atmosphere.

A focus on public outreach is a constant feature: alongside performances, there are meetings regarding excavations, necropolises, the coastal landscape, and new discoveries, often led by the Park's director, Fabio Pagano, who curates the festival.

Dies in Arena: gladiators return to the amphitheatre

Among the most anticipated events is the historical re-enactment "Dies in Arena," hosted in the Flavian Amphitheatre of Pozzuoli by groups specializing in gladiatorial combat. The audience witnesses duels, weapon demonstrations, and reconstructions of life in a Roman arena within one of the best-preserved monuments of the ancient world: an experience highly popular with families that also introduces younger generations to archaeology.

The themes of the editions

Each year, the festival selects a Latin motto or mythological image to guide its programming. After "One hundred paths, one hundred gates, one hundred voices" in 2021 and "The Wandering Gods" in 2022, the 2024 edition was titled "Mens agitat molem," while the fifth edition in 2025 adopted "Ausus se credere caelo"—"daring to trust the sky"—a Virgilian verse dedicated to the flight of Daedalus, serving as an invitation to overcome barriers, boundaries, and limits.

Pozzuoli and the Phlegraean Fields

Attending ANTRO is also a perfect excuse to explore a territory without equal: the Rione Terra and the Macellum (the so-called Temple of Serapis) in Pozzuoli, the Solfatara, Lake Avernus, the thermal baths, the underwater park of Baia, and the acropolis of Cumae. Here, Campania offers a density of history few places in the world can boast, just a few kilometres from Naples and easily accessible by metro and the Cumana railway.

The 2026 edition

At the moment, the Phlegraean Fields Archaeological Park has not yet released dates or the programme for the 2026 edition. In recent years, announcements have arrived close to the summer season, with calendars scheduled between July and the end of summer. Those wishing to attend can follow the Park's official channels, where the annual theme, full calendar, and booking procedures are published.