Gargano Popular Theatre Festival

The Gargano amateur theatre festival

The Gargano Popular Theatre Festival is the premier event dedicated to amateur theatre on the Gargano promontory. It takes place annually during the winter months at the Raffaele Lanzetta Municipal Auditorium in Vico del Gargano, in the province of Foggia. Conceived and organized by the social promotion association 'Ncvò Cappà 'Nsciaun, with the support of the Municipality of Vico del Gargano and the patronage of the Province of Foggia and the Italian Amateur Theatre Federation (FITA), the festival has become a key reference point for stage enthusiasts across Puglia in just a few years.

A festival that grows year by year

Founded in 2023, the festival has seen constant growth in both audience and prestige. In its first editions, it hosted dozens of performances and over thirty companies from every corner of Italy, drawing thousands of spectators to the small auditorium in Vico. The secret of its success lies in its formula: a long, well-paced schedule running from January to March, with weekly appointments that transform the town into a lively winter meeting point for theatre lovers.

Comedies, dialect, and social commitment

The program alternates between brilliant comedies, traditional Neapolitan and Puglian texts, dialect performances, and productions with strong social content. Alongside the competitive shows, the artistic direction offers special events and meetings dedicated to current affairs, also involving local schools in educational projects. Here, popular theatre is not just entertainment, but also an opportunity for collective reflection and community growth.

Vico del Gargano, the Village of Love

The festival is set in Vico del Gargano, an enchanting village in the Gargano National Park known as the "Village of Love" for its Valentine's Day celebrations and the evocative Vicolo del Bacio (Alley of the Kiss). Attending a show in the heart of the Gargano winter means discovering a historic centre made of narrow alleys, ancient churches, and citrus groves, in an authentic Puglia far from the typical seaside tourist circuits. The festival thus contributes to culturally animating the territory even in the low season, involving the entire network of Gargano municipalities.

The Festival Award

Starting from the third edition, the festival presents the Gargano Popular Theatre Festival Award, a recognition dedicated to the companies, actresses, and actors who have distinguished themselves throughout the season. The awards ceremony, which concludes each edition, is now a highly anticipated moment, bringing together local authorities and representatives from the Gargano municipalities on stage.