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Montorio al Vomano – La morte di Carnevale
Wednesday 14 February 2024 @ 23:34 CET
On Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, Montorio al Vomano (TE) holds ‘La Morte di Carnevale’ (Death of the Carnival). The procession was first staged at the end of the 1920s to mock and show social criticism and opposition to Mussolini’s fascist regime. By lampooning the established authorities of the time, the community wanted to show that spontaneity, irony, satire, freedom and, therefore, ‘Carnival’ itself had died with the regime.
” Last night, at the height of joy, Carnival was torn away from his loved ones. The sad announcement is made by his children, his wife, his wife’s lover, the ushers and all his relatives. The funeral will be held this evening. Not flowers, but fruit and vegetables .”
As is usual in ‘Carnival’ men play all the female roles and most of the community is masked. Several mini-performances satirise the grotesque in local, and international news and politics. The funeral oration pronounced by the priest helps dispose of ‘reality’, which is a constant theme of carnival, the poor can become rich for the day, the servant can become the master and it is this buffoonish performance that brings Carnival back to life.
The procession ends in Via dei Mulini where the deceased Carnival (now represented by a puppet) is thrown into the Vomano river by the Madonna del Ponte. The celebrations commence with mulled wine and chestnuts.