Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione, November 26 to 29, 2026

Six Characters in Search of an Author by Luigi Pirandello, adapted and directed by Nicasio Anzelmo, is on stage at Teatro Ghione from Thursday, November 26 to Sunday, November 29, 2026, with Primo Reggiani and Jane Alexander in the cast: Thursday 26 and Friday 27 at 20:30, Saturday 28 at 17:30 and 20:30, Sunday 29 at 16:00 and 18:15. The theater is at Via delle Fornaci 37, 00165 Rome, a short walk from St. Peter's Square. The nearest railway station is Roma San Pietro, served by FL3 and FL5 regional trains, and for buses and up-to-date routes the ATAC journey planner is the best tool. Prices published by the theater range from 22 to 34 euros depending on the section. Tickets can be bought from the show page on the Teatro Ghione website, which links to the authorized presale circuit, or by calling 06 6372294.

Language: performed in Italian. No English version or English surtitles are announced.

Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione at a glance

Teatro Ghione presents Six Characters in Search of an Author as Pirandello's masterpiece in a new version, with 12 performers and six performances over four days.

Performances

Thursday, November 26 at 20:30. Friday 27 at 20:30. Saturday 28 at 17:30 and 20:30. Sunday 29 at 16:00 and 18:15. The double show on Saturday and Sunday lets you choose between an evening and an afternoon.

Prices

The theater's website lists: front stalls from 31 to 34 euros, stalls from 28 to 30 euros, central balcony from 25 to 27 euros, side balcony from 22 to 25 euros. The two figures correspond to different rates, which are made clear at the time of purchase.

The company

On stage are Primo Reggiani, Jane Alexander, Enrico Ottaviano, Fabrizio Bordignon, Giorgia Guerra, Benedetta Cigliano, Francesca Annunziata, Annalisa Amodio, Pasquale Martinazzo, Camilla Benvenuto, Davide Ingannamorte and Vale Masetti. Adapted and directed by Nicasio Anzelmo.

The plot of Six Characters in Search of an Author

Six Characters in Search of an Author tells of a company of actors rehearsing a play when six strangers burst into the theater: they are characters, created by an author who then abandoned them, leaving their drama unfinished.

The interrupted rehearsal

The company is rehearsing The Rules of the Game, another Pirandello play. The six ask the Manager to become their new author and stage their story, so they can go on living. The Manager, puzzled, starts listening to them.

The family's story

The Father pushed the Mother to go with another man, by whom she had three children: the Stepdaughter, the Boy and the Child, in addition to the Son she had with the Father. Years later the family fell into poverty. The Father, without recognizing her, meets the Stepdaughter in a brothel run by Madame Pace. The encounter is interrupted just in time by the Mother's screams. Out of remorse the Father takes everyone into his home, unleashing the hostility of the legitimate Son, who feels like a stranger and despises the newcomers.

Actors against characters

The Manager agrees to rehearse a few scenes, but an irreconcilable conflict immediately arises. The professional actors try to play the characters, and the characters protest because they don't recognize themselves in the imitations, which they find false and lacking the real suffering they embody forever.

The character and the man

The Ghione's presentation sums up the heart of the work like this: the character is truer because it has an unchanging form, while man lives by continually changing masks, in a chaos of alternating masks that shatter identity. Between drownings, shady characters and forbidden encounters, the show moves from twist to twist up to the final question: is it reality or fiction?

Pirandello's masterpiece

Six Characters in Search of an Author is considered Luigi Pirandello's most famous work and the most typical of his playwriting, and it premiered in Rome, at Teatro Valle, on May 9, 1921.

A stormy premiere

The world premiere caused an uproar: Pirandello's detractors and admirers almost came to blows. The next day La Stampa headlined the new drama's success amid very heated disagreement. Few Italian theatrical debuts have such a lively legend.

A drama without acts

Pirandello called it a drama without acts or scenes, with two interruptions that seem accidental. In 1925, in the third edition, he added a preface in which he explained the origins, the aims and the key themes of the text.

The theater-within-theater trilogy

It's considered the first work of the theater-within-theater trilogy, together with Each in His Own Way and Tonight We Improvise. Breaking the fourth wall, characters speaking directly about their own status, the fragmentation of time: these are the themes that have made this text one of the cornerstones of world drama.

From several stories

As the Ghione's presentation points out, the work doesn't come from a single short story, but develops themes and ideas found in several earlier narrative texts by the same author. It's also among the titles chosen by Le Monde for its list of the 100 books of the century.

Nicasio Anzelmo, Primo Reggiani and the company

Director Nicasio Anzelmo returns to Pirandello after One, No One and 100 Thousand, a show he has directed since 2025 with Primo Reggiani in the lead.

Primo Reggiani

Born in Rome on November 5, 1983, the son of actors Aldo Reggiani and Caterina Costantini, Primo Reggiani made his debut very young in the 1996 TV movie Favola, and the following year he played the teenage Tano Cariddi in La Piovra 8. He made his film debut in 1998 with Marco Risi's L'ultimo capodanno. His first leading role was in Aurelio Grimaldi's Rosa Funzeca.

Television career

He became popular in 2005 with Orgoglio capitolo secondo on Rai 1 and Grandi domani on Italia 1. Between 2006 and 2008 he was Antonio Dentici in the two seasons of Raccontami. He has acted in R.I.S. Roma, Una grande famiglia, La vita promessa, Mina Settembre, Speravo de morì prima, Lea and Il patriarca.

Film

His films include Melissa P., Scrivilo sui muri with Cristiana Capotondi, The Sicilian Girl, Gabriele Muccino's Kiss Me Again, Francesco Patierno's Improvvisamente a Natale mi sposo and Ricky Tognazzi and Simona Izzo's Francesca e Giovanni. He received the best leading actor award at Valdarno Cinema Fedic 2008, the best supporting actor award at Roma Fiction Fest 2009 for Raccontami and a special award at the Premio Sette Colli 2017.

Theater

On stage Reggiani has acted in Caravaggio il maledetto, directed by Ferdinando Ceriani, and since 2025 in One, No One and 100 Thousand directed by Anzelmo: Six Characters is therefore the second Pirandello in a row for the director and his lead actor.

Jane Alexander and the others

Alongside Reggiani on stage is Jane Alexander, with a company of 10 actors: Enrico Ottaviano, Fabrizio Bordignon, Giorgia Guerra, Benedetta Cigliano, Francesca Annunziata, Annalisa Amodio, Pasquale Martinazzo, Camilla Benvenuto, Davide Ingannamorte and Vale Masetti. The theater's listing doesn't assign the roles.

Teatro Ghione, a stone's throw from St. Peter's

Teatro Ghione is a hall of about 500 seats at Via delle Fornaci 37, founded by the actress Ileana Ghione, who on December 9, 1980 bought and refitted the old theater on the street, giving it her own name.

A classical repertoire

The Ghione's program has always made room for the classical repertoire, with authors such as Wilde, Pirandello, Shakespeare and Goldoni, alongside concerts and shows of other kinds. Six Characters in Search of an Author fits this line: Pirandello is at home here.

Ileana Ghione

Born in Cortemilia on January 15, 1931, a student of Sergio Tofano at the Accademia d'Arte Drammatica in the 1950s, Ileana Ghione was one of the faces of Italian TV drama: Jane Eyre, An American Tragedy, David Copperfield, Buddenbrooks, Madame Curie, Una donna. She performed Giacosa's Come le foglie alongside Tino Carraro. In 2001 she was named Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic.

The last performance

She died on December 3, 2005 after collapsing on stage while performing Euripides's Hecuba in her own theater. Her body lay in state in the same hall.

Services

The Roma Capitale tourism portal lists the Ghione as accessible to people with disabilities and mentions a dog-sitting service. The theater can be reached at 06 6372294 and info@teatroghione.it.

Around Teatro Ghione: St. Peter's, Borgo, the Janiculum

Teatro Ghione is between the Vatican and the slopes of the Janiculum, in the most visited area of Rome, and if you arrive early you have plenty of ways to fill the time before the show.

St. Peter's Square

St. Peter's Square is a few minutes' walk away. If you're coming for the Sunday afternoon show you can stop by St. Peter's Basilica, checking opening hours and security checks first.

Borgo and Castel Sant'Angelo

Between St. Peter's and Castel Sant'Angelo lies the Borgo neighborhood, with its streets parallel to Via della Conciliazione: the right place for a coffee or dinner before 20:30.

The Janiculum

Behind the theater rises the Janiculum, with its terrace over the city. In late November sunset comes early: before the 16:00 matinee the light is still good.

Villa Doria Pamphilj

Further south, beyond the Janiculum, lies Villa Doria Pamphilj, one of Rome's great historic parks. If you're going to the Sunday afternoon performance, it's a walk to take in the morning, checking the gate closing time, which is earlier in late November.

Porta Cavalleggeri

At the start of Via delle Fornaci, Porta Cavalleggeri is the last passage before the theater: a gate in the Leonine Walls with the Borgia coats of arms, witness to one of the battles of the Roman Republic of 1849.

How to get to Teatro Ghione for Six Characters

The easiest way to reach Teatro Ghione by public transport is the regional train to Roma San Pietro station, served by the FL3 and FL5 lines. For buses and up-to-date connections, use the ATAC journey planner.

By train

Roma San Pietro station, opened in 1894 with the line to Viterbo, also has a bus stop and a taxi rank. From there to Via delle Fornaci it's a few minutes on foot.

By bus

Several lines serve the area of St. Peter's and Porta Cavalleggeri, at the start of Via delle Fornaci. Evening and holiday services change: check them before you head out.

By car

The Teatro Ghione website lists among the nearby parking options a free open-air lot, the San Pietro car park and the Bonifacio garage. Details are in the parking section of the theater's website. On the weekend, with two performances a day, it's best to arrive well in advance.

Planning your visit: which performance to choose

With six performances between Thursday and Sunday, Six Characters at Teatro Ghione fits very different schedules.

Thursday and Friday at 20:30

The weekday evening shows suit people who live in Rome best: a quick dinner in Borgo or in the streets around Via Gregorio VII, the show, home.

Saturday at 17:30 or 20:30

Saturday has two performances: the afternoon one leaves the evening free, the evening one goes with a post-theater dinner. With two shows on the same day, the area gets crowded between performances.

Sunday at 16:00 or 18:15

Sunday is the day for families and people coming from outside Rome: the 16:00 performance allows a morning at St. Peter's and a leisurely lunch, the 18:15 one a return home at a reasonable hour.

Tickets for Six Characters in Search of an Author

Tickets for Six Characters at Teatro Ghione cost from 22 to 34 euros depending on the section, according to the prices published by the theater.

Sections

Front stalls from 31 to 34 euros, stalls from 28 to 30 euros, central balcony from 25 to 27 euros, side balcony from 22 to 25 euros. In a hall of about 500 seats, the central balcony offers a good overall view, useful in a show with 12 actors on stage.

Where to buy them

Online from the show page on the theater's website, which links to the authorized presale circuit, or by calling 06 6372294 or writing to info@teatroghione.it.

Accessibility, teenagers and families

Teatro Ghione is listed as accessible to people with disabilities by the Roma Capitale tourism portal. To arrange access to the hall, it's best to call first.

For schools

Six Characters in Search of an Author is a text many students come across at school. Seeing it on stage, with the weekend afternoon shows, is the best way to understand what theater within theater means.

Themes

The plot includes a brothel, a forbidden encounter, a drowning and a violent death: it's not the right show for young children.

With your dog

The official tourism portal mentions a dog-sitting service at the Ghione: if you're coming with your dog, ask the theater how it works.

Where to eat before or after the show

Around Teatro Ghione the options are those of the Vatican area: many places aimed at visitors near the square, places more popular with residents in the side streets.

Before

In the streets between Via delle Fornaci, Via Gregorio VII and the slopes of the Janiculum there are pizzerias, trattorias and neighborhood cafés, suited to a quick dinner before 20:30.

After

For after the theater it's best to move to Borgo, toward Prati or toward Trastevere, a few minutes away by taxi.

A curious fact about Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione, November 26 to 29, 2026

The curious fact is that Six Characters in Search of an Author is a play born in Rome and on the Roman stage. The world premiere took place on May 9, 1921 at Teatro Valle, and it was one of the stormiest in the history of Italian theater: Pirandello's supporters and detractors almost came to blows, and the next day La Stampa spoke of a success amid very heated disagreement. More than a century later the text returns to a Roman theater that has made the Pirandello repertoire one of its pillars. The second curious fact concerns the play the actors are rehearsing when the characters burst in: it's The Rules of the Game, another play by Pirandello himself. The author stages his own company grappling with his own work, and then has it interrupted by characters he himself says he didn't want to write to the end. It's a hall of mirrors that disoriented the audience in 1921 and still works today. Third curious fact: in the original the Boy and the Child don't speak. Two of the six characters are silent, yet they are at the center of the final catastrophe. Seeing how a production makes them exist without words is one of the pleasures of every new staging.

Something nobody tells you about Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione, November 26 to 29, 2026

Nobody says it, but in Rome in autumn 2026 Six Characters in Search of an Author arrives in two different versions a few weeks apart: from October 20 to November 1 at Teatro Quirino, and in late November at the Ghione directed by Nicasio Anzelmo. For theater lovers it's a rare chance to compare: the same text, two companies, two halls of different size and history. If you saw the first, you can watch the second with a sharper eye, looking for the differences in how the conflict between actors and characters is rendered. A second thing: the Ghione's presentation stresses elements of suspense, drownings, shady characters, forbidden encounters, twists. It's a way of presenting Pirandello that focuses on plot more than philosophy, and promises a fast-paced show. If you remember the text as a school lesson on the mask, you might be surprised. A third, practical thing: on Saturday and Sunday there are two performances a day, and between the end of the first and the start of the second the sidewalk of Via delle Fornaci fills up. If you're going to the second performance, arrive a little before the recommended time, so you don't end up in line with the people coming out.

My advice for Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione, November 26 to 29, 2026

My advice is to reread the ending of the text beforehand, not the beginning. The beginning makes sense on its own in the hall. The ending, with the green light, the characters' shadows projected onto the Manager and the Stepdaughter disappearing in laughter, is a moment where every production stakes its interpretation, and recognizing it lets you appreciate Anzelmo's choices. If you have time in the days before, you can visit the Pirandello house museum in Rome: pairing it with the show turns the evening into a small Pirandello itinerary. As for the performance, in our view Sunday at 16:00 is the best choice if you're coming from out of town, because it allows a morning at St. Peter's and an early return. Saturday at 20:30 is best if you want dinner afterward in Borgo. As for the seat: in a show with 12 performers and a lot of movement on stage, the central balcony gives an overall view the front rows of the stalls don't. If you'd like to pair the show with a tailor-made day around literary Rome and the Vatican, you can contact Tour Leader Pro, which organizes tailor-made private experiences.

Another well-known fact, yet rarely mentioned

It's well known that Six Characters in Search of an Author is Pirandello's most famous work. It's less often mentioned that the text we know isn't the 1921 one. In 1925, for the third edition, Pirandello added a preface explaining the origins and aims of the drama, and the text itself had changed from one staging to the next. There is a recording, dated 1926, in which Pirandello reads part of that preface. A second rarely mentioned fact concerns its international success: as early as 1923 the play was performed in Paris, and today the text appears on Le Monde's list of the 100 books of the century. Few Italian plays have had a similar impact on the world stage. The third fact concerns the theater. Ileana Ghione had studied at the Accademia d'Arte Drammatica with Sergio Tofano, and in her theater the classical repertoire, Pirandello included, was the heart of the program for decades. Seeing Six Characters again at the Ghione means finding a line the founder had drawn since 1980. A final note: Primo Reggiani comes from a family of actors, Aldo Reggiani and Caterina Costantini. In a show about the relationship between actors and characters, between those who act and those who are, an actor raised in a family of actors brings a particular awareness.

The right photo to take at Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione, November 26 to 29, 2026

The right photo is taken before going in, from Largo di Porta Cavalleggeri, at the start of Via delle Fornaci. The gate in the Leonine Walls still has on its arch two coats of arms of the Borgia family, placed there by Pope Alexander VI. Framing it with the dome of St. Peter's in the background gives a less familiar image of the basilica, from the side, away from the crowd in the square. In the late November light, at 16:00 on Sunday, the sky is still bright. The second photo is the Ghione's facade with the show poster, a simple reminder of where and when. The third, for detail lovers, is the ticket next to the program with the list of the 12 performers: in a show where the characters are looking for someone to play them, a list of actors has a particular flavor. In the hall no photos and no videos: Pirandello's theater within theater lives on illusion, and a lit screen breaks it. At the final curtain call, if the company allows it, a shot of the whole company, actors and characters together, is the most fitting memento of the evening.

Some important events that happened here

The area around Teatro Ghione has an old and eventful history. Porta Cavalleggeri, a few meters from the start of Via delle Fornaci, is one of the gates in the Leonine Walls, and it still bears the coats of arms of the Borgia family placed by Alexander VI. On April 30, 1849 the first attack of French troops against the Roman Republic was fought right here, and the French were driven back. Among the defenders was a young actor destined for a famous career, Tommaso Salvini. In 1894 Roma San Pietro station opened, with the line to Viterbo: in the 20th century it would become a set for Italian cinema, with Totò, Alberto Sordi and Virna Lisi, and from there the railway runs into Vatican City. On December 9, 1980 Ileana Ghione bought the old theater on Via delle Fornaci and reopened it under her name. On November 25, 1986 George Bernard Shaw's Candida was staged there, directed by Silverio Blasi. On December 3, 2005 Ileana Ghione collapsed on stage while performing Euripides's Hecuba and died shortly afterward. Her body lay in state in the theater. Six Characters in Search of an Author arrives here in late November 2026, almost on the same days on which Shaw was performed in 1986.

Who has passed through Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione, November 26 to 29, 2026

The name that dominates the history of this theater is Ileana Ghione: a student of Sergio Tofano, a face of TV drama, founder and director of the hall for 25 years, Grand Officer of the Republic. The classics of the repertoire have passed across her stage, from Shaw directed by Silverio Blasi to the Greek tragedies, up to the Hecuba that was her last role. Popes and soldiers have passed through the surrounding neighborhood: the Borgias who left their coats of arms on Porta Cavalleggeri, the defenders of the Roman Republic of 1849, among them the young Tommaso Salvini, and at San Pietro station Totò, Alberto Sordi and Virna Lisi, with film crews. From November 26 to 29, 2026 the Ghione welcomes Primo Reggiani, son of Aldo Reggiani and Caterina Costantini, Jane Alexander and the company's 10 actors, with director Nicasio Anzelmo. And in spirit Luigi Pirandello passes through too, with his six rejected characters: the Father, the Mother, the Stepdaughter, the Son, the Boy and the Child, with Madame Pace appearing when the scene makes room for her.

Pirandello in Rome, after the theater

Six Characters in Search of an Author is the ideal starting point for a small Pirandello itinerary in the city.

The house museum

The Pirandello house museum is dedicated to the writer: it's the most natural visit to pair with the show.

Teatro Valle

Teatro Valle, where Six Characters premiered on May 9, 1921, is in the historic center. Walking past it after seeing the show closes the circle.

Two stagings in one autumn

If you saw the Quirino staging in October, the page on Six Characters at Teatro Quirino gives you the elements to compare it with Anzelmo's version.

Frequently asked questions about Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione

When is Six Characters in Search of an Author on at Teatro Ghione?

Six Characters in Search of an Author is on at Teatro Ghione in Rome from November 26 to 29, 2026: Thursday and Friday at 20:30, Saturday at 17:30 and 20:30, Sunday at 16:00 and 18:15. There are six performances.

How much are tickets?

Tickets for Six Characters at Teatro Ghione cost from 22 to 34 euros: front stalls 31 or 34 euros, stalls 28 or 30, central balcony 25 or 27, side balcony 22 or 25. You buy them from the theater's website or at 06 6372294.

Who is in the cast?

The cast of Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione includes Primo Reggiani and Jane Alexander, with Enrico Ottaviano, Fabrizio Bordignon, Giorgia Guerra, Benedetta Cigliano, Francesca Annunziata, Annalisa Amodio, Pasquale Martinazzo, Camilla Benvenuto, Davide Ingannamorte and Vale Masetti. Directed by Nicasio Anzelmo.

What is Six Characters in Search of an Author about?

Pirandello's Six Characters in Search of an Author tells of six characters abandoned by their author who burst in during a company's rehearsals and ask to stage their own family drama. The actors imitate them, they don't recognize themselves: it's the conflict between reality and fiction.

Where is Teatro Ghione?

Teatro Ghione is at Via delle Fornaci 37, a short walk from St. Peter's Square and Porta Cavalleggeri. The nearest railway station is Roma San Pietro, served by the FL3 and FL5 regional lines.

Is the show suitable for students?

Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione is suitable for high school students, who often read it at school. The afternoon shows on Saturday at 17:30 and Sunday at 16:00 are the most convenient. For young children the themes aren't suitable.

When did Six Characters in Search of an Author premiere?

Six Characters in Search of an Author premiered on May 9, 1921 at Teatro Valle in Rome, with such divided reactions that Pirandello's supporters and detractors almost came to blows. In 1925 Pirandello added a preface to it.

Final advice on Six Characters in Search of an Author

Six Characters in Search of an Author at Teatro Ghione is, in our view, a good opportunity to see Pirandello's most famous text again in a hall that has devoted its history to the classical repertoire. Our advice is to choose the central balcony to take in all 12 performers at a glance, arrive with the ending of the text in mind and, if possible, pair the show with a visit to the Pirandello house museum. If you're coming from out of town, Sunday at 16:00. If you want a full evening, Saturday at 20:30.

Article written by the editorial team of Tour Leader Pro, contact them for Private/Corporate/V.I.P. Tours and Experiences.

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