Festivities in Honor of Saint Anthony of Padua

Two days of faith and music in the Alto Casertano

The Festivities in Honor of Saint Anthony of Padua are the annual mid-June event that brings the center of Presenzano—a small town in the Province of Caserta, in the heart of Campania—together to celebrate the Saint of Padua, who is venerated here as co-patron alongside Saint Nicholas of Bari. It is an intimate yet highly participatory festival: a liturgical component that culminates on June 13th, the day the Church celebrates Saint Anthony, and a secular component featuring live music in Piazza ai Caduti, the village's open-air living room.

The format, repeated year after year, follows the typical tradition of Southern Italian patronal feasts: devotion first, followed by celebration in the square. On the eve of the feast, the village lights up with illuminations and the first evening concert; on the day of the Saint, a solemn mass is celebrated, followed by a procession that carries the statue through the streets of the historic center, with the evening concluding once again with music.

June 13th, the heart of the celebration

The most poignant moment is the procession on June 13th. The pageant departs from the Chiesa della Santissima Annunziata, a Renaissance-era building that has undergone several renovations, and winds through the ancient fabric of Presenzano, passing through alleys, arches, and squares overlooking the valley. Accompanying the statue are the faithful of the San Nicola Parish, the confraternities, and local families, many of whom return specifically for the occasion.

Devotion to Saint Anthony is deeply rooted in the area between the Volturno river and the Matese mountains: Saint Anthony is invoked as the protector of the poor and the saint of miracles, and his feast has always been one of the most attended in the local calendar, second only to the summer patronal celebrations and those of Saint Nicholas in December.

Music in Piazza ai Caduti

The secular part of the festivities is concentrated in Piazza ai Caduti, where the stage for the evening concerts is set up. The repertoire is typical of Campanian village festivals: dance orchestras, folk and neomelodic music groups, traditional Neapolitan songs, and sing-along hits. Performances usually begin around 9:00 PM and are free to attend.

• Eve of the feast with a concert in the square
• Solemn mass and procession on the Saint's day
• Second musical performance on the final evening
• Illuminations, market stalls, and stands along the town streets
• Free access to all events

Saint Anthony and Saint Nicholas, the two patrons

Presenzano has a dual devotional calendar. In addition to the June festivities dedicated to Saint Anthony of Padua, the village celebrates its patrons with a summer patronal feast—scheduled for August 10th to 12th in 2025, featuring morning fireworks and a marching band tour through the streets—and the Feast of Saint Nicholas in early December, when the traditional distribution of panelle takes place. However, the June recurrence remains the true feast of Saint Anthony, tied to the liturgical date of the 13th.

Presenzano, a village overlooking the valley

The village stands at an altitude of 272 meters, on a hill overlooking the Volturno plain along the route between Venafro and Vairano Patenora. With just over 1,500 inhabitants, it preserves a compact historic center and the remains of the medieval castle, with its quadrilateral plan and square and cylindrical towers, which remain the most recognizable feature of the village skyline.

In the surrounding area, one can find traces of the ancient Rufrae, a city of Samnite and later Roman origin, with an amphitheater identified in the Taverna San Felice area. The municipal territory also hosts the large pumped-storage hydroelectric plant dedicated to Domenico Cimarosa, one of the most important facilities of its kind in Italy. Visitors arriving for the festival will find, beyond the music in the square, a landscape of hills, olive groves, and small historic centers just a short distance from the Matese mountains and the Molise border.

Organizers

The festivities are promoted by the San Nicola Parish of Presenzano, with the patronage and support of the Municipality of Presenzano, which publishes the program on its official portal. For information, please contact the parish priest, Father Antonio Sarnataro, at the Chiesa della Santissima Annunziata.