The Gospel according to Ciretta

Ciretta is a young guy caught between his huge talent and his own personal abyss. Cocooned in his own world of religion, fantasy and invention, he adores Our Lady of Sorrows - despite being a petty crook and a former prostitute. His makeshift home is a temporarily closed down theater in the historic center of Naples. Here he and Angelo Giordano, an elderly homeless man, benefit from the hospitality of Perzechella and Capitano, a couple who helped the poor and the homeless during Covid lockdown by lowering baskets of food from their balcony. This encounter with an hitherto unknown world leaves a deep impression on Ciretta.

Blessed with an extraordinary voice and performing talent, Ciretta decides to organize a big procession for his beloved Madonna and starts raising money by singing and performing on the streets and selling lighters. Now his thoughts are focused on commissioning his own full-size statues of the Madonna and the Dead Christ. But devastating news arrives. The theater place has been sold and its new owner wants to turn it into yet another B&B in the historic center of Naples. Perzechella and Capitano start fighting against their imminent eviction. After Ciretta’s extraordinary procession has taken place, Perzechella sets up a little chocolate production in their theater space in order to earn some money. With eviction pending, Ciretta’s main concern is the whereabouts of his Madonna. Will they succeed in their attempt to fight eviction? Will the old ways of Naples survive in a new world buffeted by tourism and real estate speculation?