Paiocca and Sfiziosella Festival (Madonna delle Grazie celebrations, Capriglia)

A festival within the patronal feast

The Paiocca and Sfiziosella Festival is not an isolated event: it is deeply rooted in the celebrations in honor of Maria Santissima delle Grazie, the most important occasion for Capriglia, a hillside hamlet in the Municipality of Pellezzano, in the province of Salerno (Campania). The feast is traditionally held around the Sunday following July 2nd, when the village fills with lights, stalls, and visitors from the surrounding Irno Valley and the provincial capital.

It is in this setting that food stalls set up along the streets and squares offer the two dishes that give the festival its name, turning popular devotion into a convivial occasion open to everyone.

Paiocca and sfiziosella: two dishes that tell the story of the village

These two specialties are exclusively linked to Capriglia and are rarely found elsewhere:

• Paiocca — a pasta dish dressed with pumpkin, smoked scamorza, and sausage: humble in its ingredients, generous in taste, and typical of the peasant cuisine of the Salerno hills.
• Sfiziosella — a special wood-fired pizza, topped according to the local recipe and served hot directly from the stand; it is perhaps the most famous gastronomic symbol of the hamlet.

Alongside the two main dishes, you will find fried foods, side dishes, traditional desserts, and wines produced on the hills around Salerno.

The procession of the Madonna delle Grazie

The religious heart of the feast remains the solemn procession, a ritual that in Capriglia lasts several hours and winds through the entire village. A striking sight for first-time visitors is the participation of women and girls who walk the entire route barefoot, out of devotion, a vow, or gratitude: an ancient gesture that speaks volumes about the strength with which this community lives its bond with its patron saint.

The parish church dedicated to the Madonna delle Grazie houses 16th-century works attributed to Andrea Sabatini, a painter of the Raphael school, and is flanked by a 47-meter-tall bell tower in the Vanvitellian style: it is worth visiting even outside of festival days.

Capriglia, a hillside village above the Irno Valley

Capriglia has about 1,300 inhabitants and is located at an altitude of 230 meters, in a panoramic position above the valley. The hamlet's territory also includes the Hermitage of the Holy Spirit, which has been restored and transformed into a museum space hosting exhibitions and concerts. This is the birthplace of Maddalena Rosa Notari (1847), founder of the Crucified Adorers of the Eucharist, a figure still very much present in the village's memory.

Capriglia's gastronomic vocation does not end in July: at the end of September, the local calendar features the cuoppo festival, dedicated to fried food served in a paper cone, and the panuozzo festival, featuring bread baked in a wood-fired oven and filled in various ways.

What to expect

The format is that of a simple, tried-and-tested village festival: food stalls opening in the evening, live music and folk groups, popular shows, craft markets, and an area dedicated to children with games and inflatables. Families arrive early, dine outdoors among the village houses, and the evening continues with music until late.

For those visiting from outside, it is also a practical way to discover a corner of Campania less beaten by mass tourism: Capriglia is just a few minutes from Salerno and can easily be combined with a day in the city or along the Amalfi Coast.

An event to check year by year

As with many patronal feasts, the dates and the secular program are announced by the committee and the parish only a few weeks in advance. It is therefore advisable to check the channels of the Santa Maria delle Grazie Parish of Capriglia and the communications from the Municipality of Pellezzano before setting off.