Playing outdoors. Ludic approaches and urban spaces in Palermo’s historic centre.

Journal title RIVISTA GEOGRAFICA ITALIANA
Author/s Giacomo Spanu, Valentina Mandalari, Marco Picone
Publishing Year 2026 Issue 2026/3
Language Italian Pages 20 P. 132-151 File size 0 KB
DOI 10.3280/rgioa3-2026oa23549
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Starting from the experience of the urban game Il libro di Cagliostro, the article explores the potential of ludic approaches for geography. Inspired by the murder mystery party format but transposed into outdoor spaces, the game was conceived as an experimental device intertwining narrative, performance, and urban movement. The paper highlights the disruptive role of play in urban spaces, showing how it can interrupt everyday routines, make implicit norms visible, and activate alternative readings of place. From this perspective, outdoor space is not considered a mere setting for ludic action, but an active and porous element that interacts with the game and shapes its outcomes, thereby strengthening a form of public geography attentive to the relational, affective, and performative dimensions of space.

Keywords: ludic geographies, disruptions, outdoor spaces, Palermo

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Giacomo Spanu, Valentina Mandalari, Marco Picone, Mettere in gioco l’outdoor. Approcci ludici e spazi urbani nel centro storico di Palermo in "RIVISTA GEOGRAFICA ITALIANA" 3/2026, pp 132-151, DOI: 10.3280/rgioa3-2026oa23549