by InTrieste
Contemporary comedy will once again take center stage in Trieste as Festival Approdi presents the fourth edition of its Stand Up Comedy Night on June 29 at the gardens of the Museo Sartorio. The event, part of the city’s summer cultural program, Trieste Estate, will bring together six emerging comedians selected from across Italy and beyond to compete in a national showcase dedicated to new voices in stand-up comedy.
Beginning at 9:15 p.m., the finalists will each perform a 12-minute set before a live audience. The evening will be hosted by Andrea Mitri and Lorenzo Acquaviva.
This year’s Festival Approdi theme, “Cercando Umanità” (“Searching for Humanity”), explores contemporary life through a variety of artistic forms, including comedy. Organizers describe stand-up as a medium particularly suited to examining social contradictions, generational tensions and personal vulnerabilities through humor and direct observation. The competition follows other comedy-focused events in the festival, including Acquaviva’s Spoon River ReMasters and a performance by the comedy duo I Papu. The festival’s comedy program will continue on June 30 with Perestrojka e Pancake, a show by Daniele Gattano.
Since its launch, the competition has sought to identify and support emerging talent. Previous winners have gone on to gain wider national recognition. The inaugural edition was won by Altea Bonatesta, who later appeared on the television program LOL Talent Show. The second edition was won by Rosario Mancuso, known for his viral political satire series “POV: sei l’autore di…”.
This year’s finalists reflect a range of backgrounds and comedic styles. They include Marco Cavazza, who has worked with Zelig and Comedy Central Italia; Carlos Gutiérrez, the first Colombian comedian to record a special for Comedy Central Italia; Pietro Maccabei, originally from Umbria and now based in Turin; Marta Petrini of Rome; Luigi Distefanofrom Basilicata; and Ardit Cezmalliu, whose material draws on experiences of cultural identity and migration.
The winner will be chosen through a combination of audience voting and the decision of a jury chaired by Livia Amabilino. The panel also includes radio host Igor Damilano and actress Marzia Postogna.
With stand-up comedy continuing to grow in popularity across Italy, the competition has become a platform for emerging performers to test new material and reach wider audiences. For festivalgoers, the evening offers a snapshot of a genre increasingly used not only to entertain but also to explore the complexities of contemporary life.
