Born from one of the many intricate love stories of the famous Eduardo Scarpetta, Titina de Filippo was one of the greatest actresses of twentieth-century Italian theater, as well as a highly successful playwright and screenwriter.

Titina, a daughter of art and a member of a family that lived for the theater, began acting from an early age, collaborating in numerous Neapolitan companies.

Let us revisit together the highlights of Titina de Filippo's life, walking through the streets and theaters of the city of Naples.

Titina de Filippo among the many Neapolitan theater companies.

Titina de Filippo, christened Annunziata de Filippo, was born in 1989 in Naples, from the union of playwright Eduardo Scarpetta with Luisa de Filippo, niece of his wife Rosa de Filippo.

Although she was the daughter of the famous actor, Titina was given her mother's surname. Luisa de Filippo was the seamstress of Eduardo's own theater company, and with him she had the eldest daughter Titina and his other two sons, Eduardo and Peppino.

The three children were born and grew up in their mother's house, located on a street that was once known as Vico Ascensione in the Chiaia district, not far from the Scarpetta family home on Vittorio Colonna Street. Today that street is called Bausan Street, well known especially for Saturday night night nightlife.

The three soon found themselves making their stage debuts. Thus began the long career of Titina, who in 1905 also starred, among others, as Peppeniello in "Miseria e Nobiltà," a play by her father that would later be revived by the great Antonio de Curtis, known as Totò.

A decade later he collaborated with the other two brothers, in the Neapolitan Comedy Company, directed by his half-brother, Vincenzo Scarpetta. In 1917 he switched to musical comedy, joining the actors in Francesco Corbinci's company. There he met fellow actor Pietro Carloni, a descendant of an important Neapolitan theatrical family. With Pietro he married in 1922 and had their son Augusto.

After a break due to her pregnancy, Titina resumed work among the major theaters in Naples such as the Umberto Theater and the Naples Theater.

He also had great success from his collaboration in the Compagnia Stabile Napoletana Molinari, where he worked with his colleague and peer Totò.

In 1931, the three de Filippo brothers founded a new company: the Teatro Umoristico "I de Filippo," which made its debut in the Kursaal Theater in Via dei Mille in Naples, with Eduardo's famous comedy "Natale in casa Cupiello." The company achieves great success and also performs at the Sannazaro Theater Of Via Chiaia.

The removal of the three brothers

In 1944 his mother Luisa de Filippo died. The dramatic event, already sad and painful, is accompanied by another sad affair. A few months after the bereavement, during preparations for a performance at the Diana Theater, Eduardo and Peppino quarrel irreparably, splitting up.

Eduardo and Titina, however, continued to collaborate, giving birth to the Compagnia Umoristica Eduardo e Titina De Filippo, which also achieved great success with the plays "Napoli Milionaria!", staged on the stage of the San Carlo Theater of Naples, "Filumena Marturano" and "Questi Fantasmi!"

During the Italian tour in which Titina impersonates Filumena Marturano, she experiences a serious heart ailment. She thus decided to see a doctor and discovered that she had severe heart failure. Her condition forced her to retire from the stage in 1951, shortly after the company of the three de Filippo brothers was officially disbanded.

The last few years away from the theater

Titina de Filippo was not only a famous actress but also a great screenwriter. She won the film award "Nastro d'Argento" between 1951 and 1952 for the screenplay of Castellani's film "Due soldi di Speranza."

His passions included the painting and collage, to which Titina devoted herself with modest success.

In 1959 she appeared in the film "Ferdinand I King of Naples," together with her two brothers Eduardo and Peppino. That was the last time the three brothers acted together since immediately after this appearance, Titina de Filippo retired from the stage for good.

She died in 1963 in Rome, where she was buried: first in Verano Cemetery and then finally placed in Manziana Cemetery in 1969.

The greatness of Titina de Filippo

Titina de Filippo was a truly great actress, the only one able to play at that time the character so fearsome and complex of Filumena Marturano. She acted naturally and masterfully, so much so that during her long career she made her contribution as an actress to about forty operas.

He collaborated not only with Totò but also with other great and illustrious figures of the time among them were Ugo Tognazzi, Alberto Sordi, Anna Magnani and Marcello Mastroianni.

She was the author of several plays, among which the most famous is perhaps "Quaranta ma non li dimostra," written together with her brother Peppino de Filippo.

In Naples, as of the year 2018, the then Via del Teatro San Ferdinando, has taken on the new name of Via Titina de Filippo, in memory of the great Neapolitan actress.