Cosentini Carnival «Carnuluvaro mio»

A peasant carnival that the Cilento region has not forgotten

Cosentini is a small village in the municipality of Montecorice, in the province of Salerno, overlooking the Cilento coast and located within the Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni National Park. Here, every year between February and March, the community reenacts its traditional Carnival: «Carnuluvaro mio», a festival that the village elders remember dating back at least to the 1940s, and which the Associazione Euphòria has brought back to life by collecting testimonies, songs, and memories door-to-door.

The result does not resemble the large tourist carnivals of Campania: no floats, no store-bought costumes, no stage. It is a humble, participatory carnival where the entire village—children, youth, and the elderly together—becomes both actor and audience.

The maschkarata: humble masks and ancient trades

The heart of the event is the maschkarata, the masked procession that starts from Piazza Assunta and winds through the streets of the historic center. The masks are made at home using humble materials—paper, flour, and water—following techniques passed down by local families.

• The Devil and Death, archaic figures that open and close the procession;
• ancient trades, such as the Cardalana, the wool carder;
• religious figures: the Confessastelle, the Abbot, and the Monk;
• the tofa, the conch shell instrument used by Cilento farmers and fishermen, whose hoarse sound accompanies the entire procession.

The Ballata di Zeza

Upon reaching the historic center, the procession stops and the community performs «La Ballata di Zeza», the folk theater in verse that serves as the soul of the Cilento Carnival. On stage are Zeza, her husband Prucenella, and their daughter Vicenzella, the protagonists of a story about a thwarted marriage, told through local dialect, songs, and folk dances. It is not a professional show but a collective action: the performers are the same neighbors who stitched their own costumes the day before.

Shrove Tuesday: the death of Carnuluvaro and the Quarajesema

The final day is Shrove Tuesday. The maschkarata takes to the streets a second time, the Ballata di Zeza returns to the square, and then the ritual that concludes everything takes place: the death of Carnuluvaro. The community intones a funeral lament, and the effigy representing the Carnival is burned in the town square. Immediately after, the Quarajesema is set up—the old woman with seven chicken feathers, one for each week leading up to Easter: the time for celebration ends, and Lent begins.

Intangible Heritage of Campania

In 2023, «Carnuluvaro mio — La Ballata di Zeza» was included in the Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Campania (IPIC), in the section dedicated to traditional cultural expressions. The Cosentini Carnival also participates in the Stati Generali della Zeza, the annual meeting that brings together traditional Campanian carnivals that share this form of folk theater.

«Maschkari e suoni pe sta via»: the open-air museum

In July 2026, the Associazione Euphòria unveiled an open-air museum in Cosentini dedicated to the Carnival, created with the support of the Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni National Park. Ten majolica panels by artist Mariana Gonzales, scattered throughout the historic center and equipped with QR codes, provide access to videos of recent editions and testimonies collected from residents; two boards in the village squares display the itinerary map, including a virtual path designed for those with mobility issues. The museum allows visitors to experience the Cosentini Carnival all year round, even out of season.

When and where

The event takes place over two days, Carnival Sunday and Shrove Tuesday, with the procession departing in the early afternoon from Piazza Assunta. Everything takes place outdoors, along the streets and squares of the village, under the patronage of the Municipality of Montecorice and the Province of Salerno. It is one of the best opportunities to visit the inland Cilento region in the low season, when the hillside villages above the coast are returned to their inhabitants.