Castellese Carnival

A grassroots celebration in the heart of Irpinia

The Castellese Carnival is the annual event that, between February and March, brings Castelfranci to life in its most communal form. This small town in the province of Avellino, Campania, has just over 1,700 residents and sits at an altitude of 450 meters overlooking the Calore Valley. For one afternoon, its narrow streets become an open-air stage where makeshift masks, homemade costumes, and groups of friends mingle without hierarchy or reserved seating.

Masked parade to the rhythm of the tarantella

The heart of the day is the masked parade that winds through the historic center. This is not a procession of monumental floats like those seen in Italy's major carnival cities, but a local parade where the participants' creativity and live music take center stage. The groups are accompanied by the tarantella, which in Irpinia is not just a folk ornament but a living musical language. Accordions, frame drums, and singing set the pace, drawing even the spectators into the dance.

• Meeting point and departure from the town center, near Piazza Municipio
• Route through the village streets, with stops, music, and dancing
• Free participation: to join the parade, simply wear a mask
• Event designed for all ages, from families with children to groups of young people

The reading of the Testament

As evening falls, the most anticipated and identity-defining moment arrives: the reading of the Testament. A tradition shared by many Irpinian towns, it consists of a street theater performance where Carnival, now dying, dictates its last will and testament. Written in verse and local dialect, the testament distributes ironic bequests to the townspeople and reviews the year's events: gossip, administrative matters, romances, and mishaps become the subject of public satire. It is a closing ritual that combines collective laughter with community memory, ending with a final farewell to Carnival.

The Dead Carnival, an Irpinian peculiarity

In Castelfranci, as in other parts of Irpinia, the celebration does not end on Shrove Tuesday. The climax occurs in the following days with what is locally known as the Dead Carnival, traditionally celebrated on the Sunday after Shrove Tuesday. This is why the Castellese Carnival is often held once Lent has already begun, a unique feature that distinguishes these valleys from the more common carnival calendar, also found in variations in Montella, Castelvetere sul Calore, and other neighboring towns.

Who organizes the festival

The event is promoted by the Castelfranci Youth Forum, which manages the organization with the support of the Pro Loco and the Municipality of Castelfranci. The initiative is part of the events highlighted by the Sistema Irpinia portal of the Province of Avellino. It is a self-produced festival, free of charge, where the work of volunteers replaces large-scale productions; this artisanal dimension is its hallmark and explains why the town feels it so deeply as its own.

Castelfranci, a village in the Calore Valley

Visitors arriving for Carnival will find a village worth exploring even after the festivities end. Castelfranci—whose name is said to derive from Castrum Francorum, a frontier garrison between the duchies of Benevento and Salerno—preserves the Church of San Nicola, the 19th-century Palazzo Vittoli, and the Sanctuary of Santa Maria del Soccorso. We are also in the heart of the Taurasi DOCG wine region and the home of extra virgin olive oil made from Ravece olives. Local wineries and oil mills are happy to round off a day of celebration, alongside the handmade durum wheat pasta that is the local specialty.