APPUNTI PER UNA RILETTURA CRITICA DEL TEATRO DI TINDARI

This paper presents a critical reassessment of the Theatre of Tyndaris based on the systematic re-examination of archaeological, archival, graphic, and photographic documentation dating from the late eighteenth to the twentieth century. Although the monument has long been the subject of scholarly attention, several aspects concerning its architectural development, construction phases, and later transformations remain unresolved, largely as a result of excavation practices, restorations, and material rearrangements that have altered both the physical evidence and its scholarly transmission. The study integrates a comprehensive reading of stratigraphies across the entire monument with the analytical review of unpublished archival sources, allowing for a more nuanced reconstruction of the building sequence and a clearer distinction between ancient structures and the outcomes of modern interventions. Particular attention is devoted to the cavea and its retaining systems, the transformation of the orchestra into an arena, and the long-debated relationship between the stage building, the analemmata, and the lateral access systems. The results contribute to refining the relative chronology of the monument and to reopening the discussion on its original layout, proposing new interpretative frameworks for understanding the architectural logic and functional evolution of the Theatre of Tindari.