Premio Antonio Sorgente

One of Benevento’s most evocative summer events returns: “A Benevento ’o teatro è a ’o Sacramento”, the theatre festival that brings popular theatre to the unique setting of the Arena dell’Arco del Sacramento. This place alone speaks of history, stone, memory and belonging, and for the occasion it becomes a living, welcoming and deeply communal space.

Now in its second edition, the event hosts the Antonio Sorgente – Don Saverio Award, created to promote amateur theatre while preserving the memory of figures who have left an important mark on the cultural and human life of the city. At the heart of the festival is the desire to celebrate theatre not only as an art form, but also as an opportunity for encounter, sharing and participation.

From 27 June to 8 August, six theatre companies from different provinces of Campania will take turns on stage, offering the audience a rich and varied programme. The festival opens on 27 June with the Compagnia di Teatro Popolare di Portico di Caserta, which will perform “A Tutti Ma Non A Me” by Ciro Ceruti, directed by Roberto Nacca. On 4 July, the stage will welcome the Compagnia Teatrale L’Eclettica from Naples with “Quelle Anime Dannate”, written and directed by Giuseppe Salatiello. On 11 July, the Associazione Teatrale Artemanus from Avellino will perform “Non Mi Dire Te L’Ho Detto” by Paolo Caiazzo, directed by Valentina Ripa.

The programme continues on 18 July with the Compagnia Teatrale Maschere Nude from Naples, presenting “Tutti e Tre Per Terra” by Luca Franco, directed by Ernesto Sasso. In August, audiences will be able to attend “A Figliata” by R. Viviani on 1 August, performed by the Compagnia Teatrale “I Pappici” from Salerno, directed by Rosita Sabetta. The festival will close on 8 August with the Compagnia Stabile di Bellizzi, performing “Via Convento” by Roberto Santoro, directed by Maria and Antonio Sannino.

Each evening will be an opportunity to rediscover the value of popular theatre, capable of speaking to everyone through smiles, emotion, dialect, gestures and that scenic truth that comes from direct contact with the audience. What makes the event even more meaningful is its dedication in memory of Alessandro Verdicchio, whose name accompanies the festival as a sign of gratitude, affection and continuity.

“A Benevento ’o teatro è a ’o Sacramento” is not just a theatre festival: it is an invitation to experience summer through culture, to gather in one of the city’s most fascinating places and to be surprised by the simple, authentic power of theatre. A theatre made of companies, stories, applause and memory; a theatre that, evening after evening, gives the community back the joy of being together.