Cena a Colori sotto le Stelle

An open-air banquet in the heart of Casalbore

Some festivals don't need massive stages or grand billboards: all it takes is a tree-lined avenue, a few dozen tables, and the desire to reconnect. This is exactly the spirit of the Cena a Colori sotto le Stelle, the summer event that every year brings Viale Cesare Battisti to life in Casalbore, a village of just over 1,700 inhabitants nestled at an altitude of 601 meters in the province of Avellino, Campania, just a stone's throw from the border with the Sannio region of Benevento.

The initiative is promoted by the Pro Loco Pangea with the patronage of the Municipality of Casalbore and is part of the Estate Casalborese calendar, the festival that fills the town with cultural, sporting, and social events from June to September.

How it works: every table tells a story

The formula is simple, which is why it works. Tables and benches are set up along the avenue to welcome residents and visitors; the rest is up to each group—families, friends, and neighbors. You bring your own dinner, plates, tablecloths, and decorations, and you set up your table inspired by a specific color or theme, tending to it with taste and dedication.

The result is a mosaic that changes from year to year: rows of tables shifting from red to blue, from pure white to vibrant shades, with improvised centerpieces, lanterns, flowers, and handmade decorations crafted in the days prior. Strolling along the avenue at the start of the evening, before the dinner gets into full swing, is a spectacle in itself.

Music, saxophone, and entertainment

The soundtrack is entrusted to local professionals. In the July 25, 2026 edition, the evening was accompanied by a DJ set from Umberto Finelli and saxophone performances by Gianluca Marano, while the hosting and entertainment were handled by Enzo Costanza. A year earlier, in 2025, the avenue danced to the music of the same Umberto Finelli and the voice of Peo Voice.

• Where: Viale Cesare Battisti, in the center of Casalbore
• When: A Saturday evening in late July
• Organizers: Pro Loco Pangea, with the patronage of the Municipality of Casalbore
• Format: Dinner brought and prepared by participants, with themed table settings
• What to expect: Music, DJ sets, live saxophone, and entertainment until late

Why it's more than just a dinner

The organizers have made it clear since the first edition: the goal is to enhance the spirit of community, focusing on social interaction, participation, and a sense of belonging. In an inland Irpinia village, where streets empty out in winter and emigrant families return in summer, a shared banquet on the main street is not just a folkloric detail: it is the moment when the town recognizes itself, counts itself, and tells its own story.

It is also a formula that flips the logic of a traditional food festival. Here, no one cooks for others behind a stand: everyone brings what they can make, and the quality of the evening depends on the creativity of those who participate. This is why the Cena a Colori has quickly established itself as one of the most anticipated events of the Casalbore summer calendar.

Casalbore, a village to discover

Visitors from out of town can take advantage of the evening to explore a center of eastern Irpinia rich in ancient traces, from archaeological heritage to the routes linked to the Via Francigena of the South that cross this stretch of Campania. The town borders Montecalvo Irpino and, towards the province of Benevento, Buonalbergo, Ginestra degli Schiavoni, and San Giorgio La Molara: a crossroads of valleys and roads that has always made Casalbore a transit point.

In the local summer calendar, the Cena a Colori joins other events curated by the Pro Loco and the municipal administration, from the Casalbore Art Festival in August to the patronal festivities in honor of Maria Santissima della Neve, which bring well-known names of Italian music to the square every year.