RinascitaFest

A grassroots festival

RinascitaFest is a political, artistic, and cultural festival held in Pomigliano d'Arco, in the metropolitan city of Naples, Campania. It was founded in 2022 through the initiative of Rinascita Pomigliano, the Ma Quale Casa committee, the Justice for Mario Paciolla campaign, and a network of local associations, movements, and social and cultural entities. The first edition, titled For Peace Among Peoples, took place from June 30 to July 10, 2022; in subsequent years, the event has settled into the second half of September.

The former Circumvesuviana station returned to the city

The venue is the area of the former Circumvesuviana station along Via Roma: a disused space that, for about ten days a year, becomes a square, a stage, and a meeting place once again. This is not just a logistical detail, but the political heart of the project: the organizers openly claim the desire to return the former station to the citizenry, transforming it into a common good. In a town marked by deindustrialization and numerous abandoned spaces, the festival acts as a concrete experiment in temporary reuse and collective reappropriation.

Ten days of debates, music, and workshops

The program alternates between daytime in-depth sessions and evening performances, following a well-established formula:

• Meetings and debates on labor, rights, housing, prisons, migration, education, information, and disarmament, featuring trade unionists, journalists, researchers, and activists;
• Evening concerts with bands and singer-songwriters from the Neapolitan and Campanian scene;
• Screenings of documentaries and investigative films, as well as evenings watching sports together;
• Book presentations, exhibitions, workshops, and spaces dedicated to children;
• Popular cuisine and stands managed by volunteers, with affordable prices and no obligation to purchase.

Recent editions

In 2024, the festival took place from September 12 to 22 under the title Bella Ciao. The 2025 edition, titled Bread and Peace, was held from September 10 to 21: "bread" understood as rights, inclusion, and solidarity, and "peace" as a radical rejection of war and indifference. Guests included Senator Ilaria Cucchi, Fanpage.it director Francesco Cancellato, Fiom general secretary Michele De Palma, Father Mattia Ferrari of Mediterranea Saving Humans, Mario Paciolla's parents, and, on the final evening, activist Patrick Zaki. Performers on stage included 'E Zezi Gruppo Operaio, Francesco Lettieri, Valerio Bruner, Giovanni Block, and Dadà, among others.

Free, self-financed, independent

RinascitaFest defines itself as free, independent, and totally self-financed: no commercial sponsors, but rather volunteer work, self-production, and crowdfunding campaigns. Admission has always been free, with no obligation to spend, and the event adheres to the BDS Italia campaign. This choice also explains the atmosphere: more than just a series of shows, the festival is a socio-cultural village where one can listen to a debate, have dinner at popular prices, and end the evening in front of the stage.

Pomigliano d'Arco and the Campanian context

Pomigliano d'Arco is one of the historic industrial hubs in the area northeast of Naples, at the foot of Mount Vesuvius, and has a long tradition of working-class culture—starting with the famous musical group 'E Zezi. The city also hosts the Pomigliano Jazz festival in the summer, one of the longest-running music festivals in Campania. RinascitaFest fits into this fabric with a decidedly militant identity, offering visitors to the Vesuvius area in September an unusual opportunity to get to know the city from the perspective of those who live there.