Matteo Destro is a director, mask creator, theatre maker, and teacher.
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His journey into theatre began shortly after earning a Master’s Degree in Pedagogy from the University of Padua. Parallel to his work as a pedagogue, he began performing in the streets, wearing a red clown nose. Driven by a desire to deepen his theatrical training, he moved to Paris to study at L’École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq, where he worked with Jacques Lecoq himself and a team of renowned teachers, including Pierre Byland, Norman Taylor, and Alain Gautré.
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This experience sparked a deep passion for the art of mask, which has since become a central part of his work. A few years later, he deepened his study of mask creation with maestro Donato Sartori at the Centro Maschere e Strutture Gestuali.
As Matteo puts it: “My main work is theatre pedagogy, mask creation, and the creation of performances. Often, these three practices are part of the same creative process.”
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Matteo’s pedagogical approach is rooted in both the practical and conceptual foundations of mask work. His work spans a wide variety of theatrical styles and forms—from tragicomedy and grotesque theatre, to melodrama, clowning, and storytelling.
He has taught internationally, working with theatre companies, schools, and universities around the world. His teaching focuses on Movement Analysis and Improvisation, with a strong emphasis on the actor’s presence, technique, and sense of play. He also supports students in the process of creating original work—as playwrights, directors, and performers.
He taught at the Helikos School, where, in addition to these areas of teaching, he also ran the MaMaS (Material–Mask–Space) program—a research laboratory focused on the design and creation of masks and their relationship with movement and space
Matteo has led masterclasses and workshops at institutions such as the University of Iowa, New York University, and the VCA at Melbourne University. He has also taught for several years at Divadlo Usmev at the Bratislava Conservatory (Slovakia), Tiyatro Medresesi (Turkey), and developed a program on Commedia dell’Arte for Inchicore College (Dublin, Ireland). He currently leads a theatre program for Princeton University.
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Over the years, Matteo has collaborated as a director and playwright with numerous companies and theatres around the world, including:
Passepartout Production (Denmark), Cie Accès-Soir (France), Open Door Theatre (China), Barabao Teatro, ArtiVarti, Larven Teatro, Stabilimento Teatrale, Ibuki Amizero, Orchestra Filarmonica di Torino and Teatro Immagine (Italy), Boom Circus and Iowa Partnership in the Arts (USA), Divadlo Usmev (Slovakia), Compagnie ad Hoc (France), Ishøj Teater (Denmark), Tiny Colossus (Germany), Aborígenes Teatro and Teatro Punto (Spain), Anonima Teatro (France), and Teatro em Branco (Portugal).
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In 2016, Matteo, together with Alay Arcelus Macazaga, founded ATELIER Mask Movement Theatre in San Miniato, Italy—an international center for theatre training, creation, and research.
At ATELIER, he leads the international school, the Atelier Mamot theatre company, and a creative laboratory dedicated to experimenting with form, mask-making, and the architecture of theatrical space.