GustArte

A festival where taste meets art

GustArte is no ordinary food festival. As the name suggests, it is an event where taste and art converge, blending cuisine, performance, music, and the celebration of the historic centre. In Durazzano, a town of just over two thousand inhabitants in the province of Benevento, Campania, the village alleys fill with stalls, long tables, makeshift stages, and courtyards opened to the public for four consecutive evenings in August. The vision of the Gustarte APS Association is clear: to bring the village to life through flavours, theatre, music, and conviviality, rather than focusing solely on tastings.

Capocasale, the village turned stage

The heart of the event is the historic district of Capocasale, located at the foot of Mount Jardino, in the area where the Sannio region of Benevento meets the Caserta territory. The route stretches for over a kilometre through cobbled streets, arches, stairways, and doorways, with several landmarks becoming fixed points of the event: the courtyard of Palazzo Cice, home to a cooking school named after Pellegrino Artusi, and the gardens of Palazzo Stasi, where the opening night aperitifs are held. Walking the route is an experience in itself: you move seamlessly from a tasting to a theatrical scene, from a craft stall to a folk choir.

Sannio food and local products

The gastronomic core is managed by around thirty selected exhibitors, including artisanal and agri-food producers from the Sannio and Caserta areas: cheeses, cured meats, preserves, pasta, extra virgin olive oil, sweets, beers, and, of course, wine. Alongside the stalls, local restaurateurs offer menus built around regional products, typically consisting of several courses served by reservation in historic courtyards. The focus is on authentic local cuisine: recognisable dishes, raw materials from inland Campania, minimal staging, and plenty of substance.

Wine, masterclasses, and workshops

One of the features that distinguishes GustArte from more traditional village festivals is its consistent educational programme. Each edition hosts wine masterclasses led by journalists and experts, dedicated to Sannio grape varieties and their connections to history, culture, travel, and the dining table. These are complemented by workshops held in collaboration with organisations like Slow Food and Legambiente, focusing on local cuisine and waste reduction, as well as sessions dedicated to extra virgin olive oil. These are limited-capacity events designed for those who want to learn, not just taste.

Street theatre, folk music, and crafts

The artistic side is entrusted to street theatre, where actors move through the alleys following the audience rather than waiting on a stage, and to the folk music of Sannio: tarantellas, accordions, tammorre, and folk groups that close the evenings with dancing among the houses of the historic centre. There are also art exhibitions, displays of traditional crafts, cooking demonstrations, and family activities, while the late-night portion of the event moves into the courtyards for a more informal atmosphere with drinks and dance music.

Durazzano, the Carolino Aqueduct, and roots tourism

GustArte also serves a clear territorial purpose: promoting Durazzano as a stop along the Carolino Aqueduct, the Vanvitellian masterpiece listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site alongside the Royal Palace of Caserta. The area, once a Bourbon hunting reserve, perfectly illustrates the historical and environmental richness of inland Campania. One statistic is particularly striking: a significant portion of the audience arrives from abroad, particularly from the United States, as part of the roots tourism movement that brings descendants of emigrants back to their ancestral towns during the summer.

From 2015 to today

Founded in 2015 by a group of local volunteers, the festival has grown steadily: recent editions have exceeded ten thousand visitors over the four evenings, with a budget of around 35,000 euros supported in part by regional public funds. It is one of the most cited examples in the Sannio region of a small event capable of producing a real economic and cultural impact on a tiny municipality.