Teatro alla Deriva

Teatro alla Deriva: the floating stage of the Campi Flegrei

Teatro alla Deriva is one of the most original summer theatre festivals in Campania and a staple of the Phlegraean summer. Born around 2012 in the municipality of Bacoli, near Naples, the event built its identity on a simple yet spectacular concept: bringing theatre onto the water. For many years, performances took place on a floating raft moored in the circular thermal pond of the Terme Stufe di Nerone, with the audience gathered around the banks in a setting suspended between thermal vapours and Mediterranean vegetation.

From the thermal raft to the Giardino dell'Orco

Starting with its fourteenth edition in 2025, the festival embarked on a new journey: it left the raft at the Terme Stufe di Nerone to move to the nearby Giardino dell'Orco, on the shores of Lake Averno, in the territory of Pozzuoli. The festival adopted the name Teatro (alla deriva) al Giardino, remaining firmly anchored to the heart of the Campi Flegrei and their extraordinary volcanic landscape. Amidst fruit trees and olive groves overlooking the ancient crater, the audience rediscovers the same intimate and immersive atmosphere of the seasons spent on the raft.

Theatre at sunset, without artificial lights

The hallmark of the festival remains the direct relationship between actor and environment. Performances are staged on Sundays at sunset, using only the natural light of the fading sun: a choice that requires companies to use essential scenography, placing the performer's body and voice at the centre. The programme alternates between rewrites of classics, contemporary drama, storytelling in Neapolitan, and music-theatre moments, in a continuous dialogue with the Phlegraean landscape.

Artistic direction

The festival was conceived by Ernesto Colutta and is directed by Giovanni Meola, who oversees the artistic direction and signs several adaptations. Throughout its editions, Teatro alla Deriva has hosted companies and artists from the Campanian and national scene, confirming itself as an open-air theatre laboratory capable of combining research, accessibility, and local valorisation.

An experience to live in the Campi Flegrei

Attending Teatro alla Deriva means experiencing a unique evening, where live performance blends with one of the most evocative landscapes in Campania. Between the coast of Bacoli and Lake Averno, the festival is an invitation to rediscover the Campi Flegrei through theatre, throughout the Sundays of July.