TUFO LIVE at Pessoa Luna Park: a debate on Naples and De Crescenzo

Thursday, July 30, 2026, at 21 p.m., the moat of Castel Sant'Elmo hosts the first live event of TUFO, the newsletter that tells the story of Naples and everything that revolves around the city. The event is part of the rich program of PESSOA Luna Park, the initiative that has transformed one of Vomero's most evocative locations into a hub of art, entertainment, and debate. The actor and creator will be speaking on stage, starting with one of the most famous scenes from "Thus Spoke Bellavista," Fabio Balsamo, a well-known face of The Jackal, and the digital anthropologist José Compagnone, who together with the De Crescenzo family oversaw the digitization of Luciano's enormous archive.

Excuse me, but what happened? Naples as an ancient theater.

The title of the meeting draws inspiration from a question Luciano De Crescenzo loved to repeat, a quip that recurs regularly in his works and interviews, and which serves as a common thread for a reflection on the city. The event begins with the scene of red seahorse of "Thus Spoke Bellavista," the 1984 cult film starring Riccardo Pazzaglia that De Crescenzo wrote, directed, and starred in, transforming it into an ironic and philosophical manifesto of Neapolitan identity. The seahorse itself will be on display at PESSOA Luna Park, offering attendees the opportunity to see it in person. The debate will explore a theme dear to Eduardo De Filippo, who defined Naples as a “ancient theater, always open”Does this definition still hold up today? In a changing city, amidst new generations, urban transformations, and social challenges, the idea that Naples is a permanent stage where everything happens before everyone's eyes retains its evocative power. Fabio Balsamo brings the perspective of someone who lives in Naples and narrates it through the contemporary languages ​​of comedy and the web, while José Compagnone offers the perspective of someone working to preserve and make digitally accessible the legacy of one of the city's greatest storytellers.

The PESSOA Luna Park: A Summer in the Moat of Castel Sant'Elmo

Il PESSOA Luna Park It is one of the most original initiatives of the Neapolitan summer of 2026. Set in the moat of Castel Sant'Elmo, the Angevin fortress overlooking the city from Vomero, this hybrid space blends concerts, performances, installations, and debates in an environment that seems suspended between the medieval walls and the contemporary artistic offerings. It takes its name from the Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa, known for his multiplicity of literary identities, and like him, the project multiplies languages: the same space becomes theater, cinema, concert hall, and agora for the exchange of ideas. Admission to the TUFO LIVE event is free: you only pay the museum entrance fee, equivalent to 2 euros and 50To participate in the debate, registration is recommended and can be done online. Castel Sant'Elmo is easily accessible by metro (Vanvitelli stop, line 1) and by bus. Central Funicular and Chiaia Funicular, which rise from the centre towards Vomero.