Good Friday – Sacred Drama (I Parti)

Good Friday in Vittoria

Good Friday in Vittoria, located in the heart of the Ragusa province in south-eastern Sicily, is marked by a centuries-old tradition known to locals as «I Parti»: the sacred performance of the Sacred Drama of the Passion and death of Christ. It is one of the oldest and most attended rites of the Holy Week in the Iblean region, preserved by the Congregation of the Most Holy Crucifix, founded in 1644, just a few years after the city itself was established.

A tradition born in the 17th century

As early as 1657, the Congregation was entrusted with organizing the solemn procession from the Cathedral to the Calvary; by 1669, the pageant was enriched with theatrical performances of the Passion recited in dialect. The text used today is the work of the Vittoria-born Marquis Alfonso Ricca (1791-1850): 450 unrhymed hendecasyllabic verses in the romantic 19th-century style, first staged in 1859. Since then, «I Parti» have been repeated almost without interruption, save for the pauses during the two world wars.

Piazza Calvario, an open-air stage

The heart of the day is Piazza Calvario (Piazza Sei Martiri), where an imposing set is built around a small neoclassical building. Here, in the evening, the Sacred Performance takes place with professional actors and numerous extras: the heartbreaking dialogue between the Madonna, the Apostle John, and Mary Magdalene, the soldier Longinus's lance, the deposition of the Crucifix from the cross, and the composition of the Pietà. The body of Christ is finally wrapped in a shroud and placed in the gilded wooden urn built in 1834.

The processions

The day is divided into several moments: the Procession of the Cataletto at noon and, in the evening, after the drama, the solemn Procession of the Dead Christ and Our Lady of Sorrows through the streets of the town center. The re-enactment emphasizes the drama of pain and death over the Resurrection, reflecting the intense Spanish-influenced religiosity rooted in Sicily.

A heritage of Vittoria

More than just a show, «I Parti» is an identity-defining event for the community of Vittoria that unites faith, popular theater, and historical memory. Every year, the Municipality of Vittoria and the entire city gather around Piazza Calvario to relive, amidst live music and moving silences, one of the most authentic chapters of the religious tradition in the province of Ragusa.