Acteur was a hard-sell for me at first. Azzaro fragrances tend to be that way. The spicy Azzaro "house note" is one I don't care for, a strange blend of oakmoss, cedar, rose, and carnation that appears in most of their masculines. This one is getting harder to find, and there's a perception in the blogosphere that it's discontinued. I've read that new bottles are available at the Azzaro Boutique in Paris, but their numbers are limited.
Acteur opens with a nice burst of fresh bergamot. The citron is a little green, thanks to calamus. The fruit is spiced by the bitter entrance of mace and cardamom. This spicey accord smoothly transitions into a unique heart of rose and carnation. The carnation meets the cardamom head-on, and establishes a nice floral piquancy. Touches of muguet and jasmine sweeten things, creating an olfactory illusion of apple cider. The cidery aura emanates from Acteur for a few hours, before sliding into a warm, mossy, musky-sweet base. As the fragrance evolves, the floral notes steal the show, tempered only by darker cedar and moss notes. It's all very well-balanced, fresh-smelling, and dry.
Acteur conveys that sense of elegant and masculine adroitness. There's something about its expression of greens, spices, and flowers that brings class and ruggedness into the same room, sits them down, and negotiates a truce. At first it seems like a spicy-woody monster, but when worn in early autumn it smells much lighter, airier, and not nearly as serious. It is a perfectly autumnal fragrance, and a masterpiece.