Totò and his Naples: between life and legend at the Royal Palace

“Totò and His Naples”, from October 31, 2025, to January 25, 2026, at the Royal Palace of Naples — an exhibition celebrating the indissoluble bond between the Prince of Laughter and the city that gave him his soul.

There is a unique way of telling the story of Naples — one made of irony and melancholy, of theater and truth, of art and survival. That way belongs to Totò, and Naples has always responded to him with the same intensity. To celebrate this unbreakable connection, the Royal Palace of Naples will host, from October 31, 2025, to January 25, 2026, the major exhibition “Totò and His Naples”, a new show curated by Alessandro Nicosia and Marino Niola, one of the most anticipated events marking the 2,500th anniversary of the founding of Neapolis.

Promoted by the National Committee Neapolis 2500 in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Ministry of Culture, the Royal Palace of Naples, and with the participation of Totò’s heirs, the exhibition is organized and produced by C.O.R. – Creare Organizzare Realizzare. Its strength lies not only in the richness of the materials on display but in its ability to capture the soul of an artist who embodied, more than anyone else, the city he came from.

Totò, Son and Symbol of Naples

Antonio de Curtis was born in the Rione Sanità in 1898, in a neighborhood that today remembers him with statues, murals, and quotes scattered among its narrow streets. His artistic journey — from theater to cinema, from poetry to song — is deeply tied to Naples, to its language, its contrasts, its popular spirit. The “Neapolitan-ness” that Totò carried within him, made of pride, irony, and disillusionment, is the beating heart of this exhibition.

“I remain a Neapolitan, with all the virtues and flaws of a Neapolitan. Every fifteen or twenty days I go back to Naples for a short stay; I can’t stay away from my city for too long; the people there give me the warmth of life. And every time, I am moved like a child,” he once declared.

These words today resonate as an eternal declaration of love — the same feeling visitors will rediscover in the rooms of the Royal Palace, where every element — images, objects, and sounds — builds an intimate dialogue between the Prince and his city.

An Immersive Journey into the Life and Art of the Prince of Laughter

The exhibition, set up in the Sala Belvedere of the Royal Palace, is conceived as a true immersive journey into Totò’s world. It is not a simple commemorative show but a visual and sensory narrative designed to envelop visitors and bring them into direct contact with the artist’s story and soul.

Through original documents, vintage photographs, film clips, costumes, multimedia installations, movie posters, newspapers, and personal testimonies, the exhibition retraces the life and career of the great comic actor, as well as his personal bond with the city of Naples. Scenic reconstructions evoke the atmosphere of theaters and film sets, while audiovisual installations allow visitors to hear his voice, his songs, and his poems — fully immersing them in his creative universe.

The exhibition unfolds through thematic sections that paint a complete and surprising portrait: The Origins, The Rione Sanità, Totò and the Beauties of His Naples, Theater, Cinema, Poetry, Songs, Testimonies, and finally The Farewell from His Naples — a moving epilogue sealing the eternal bond between the artist and the city. Each section is a piece of a larger mosaic that reconstructs Totò not only as a comic actor but also as an intellectual, poet, linguistic innovator, and universal symbol of Neapolitan identity.

Totò and His Naples: The City as Soul and Mirror

The exhibition’s central idea is that Totò and Naples are two sides of the same coin: one cannot be fully understood without the other. The city is for Totò both root and horizon, a source of inspiration and a mirror of the soul. In his jokes, gestures, and even in his silences, Naples lives and breathes, with all its contradictions and poetry.

For this reason, “Totò and His Naples” is not merely a tribute to a great comedian but also a celebration of the city itself, told through its most authentic interpreter. Visitors are invited to reflect on Naples as a state of mind — a way of living and loving — and on Totò as the living expression of that popular philosophy that has spanned centuries, influenced cinema and television, and continues to speak to new generations.

A Legacy That Transcends Time

The exhibition does not simply evoke the past; it seeks to revitalize Totò’s figure in a contemporary light, showing how his humor and poetic vision remain strikingly relevant today. His irony, imbued with philosophy and humanity, endures as a universal language that transcends social and cultural barriers.

For younger generations, it’s an opportunity to discover an artist who, with simplicity and genius, captured the deepest emotions of the human soul. For those who have always known him, it’s a homecoming — a meeting with an old friend who still makes us laugh and move.

In every object, in every image, the pulse of a time that never fades can be felt — of a Naples that lives on through gestures, proverbs, and sounds. And as visitors move through the rooms, they realize that the exhibition is not just about Totò — it’s about all of us, about our longing for belonging, identity, and love for our homeland.

Practical Information

📍 Sala Belvedere, Royal Palace of Naples – Piazza del Plebiscito 1, 80132 Naples
🗓️ From October 31, 2025, to January 25, 2026
🕘 Open daily from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. (last entry at 6:00 p.m.) – closed on Wednesdays
🎟️ Tickets available online at TicketOne and at the Royal Palace ticket office
🌐 More information at www.palazzorealedinapoli.org