Salento Carnival – The Quadriglia and the Zeza

The Salento Carnival, in the heart of the Cilento

In the Municipality of Salento, a village of just over 1,700 inhabitants nestled at an altitude of 420 meters in the province of Salerno, Carnival is not just a folkloric interlude but a defining identity event. Here, in the inland Cilento, the festival revolves around two popular rituals that Campania preserves with particular care: the Quadriglia danced in the square and the Zeza comedy, a form of sung and acted theater of Neapolitan origin. Two different languages—dance and drama—that tell the same story in the same village: a community's desire to recognize itself in its own traditions.

The Quadriglia: A French dance that became Cilentano

The Quadriglia of Salento began as a French group dance and has evolved over time into the symbol of the local Carnival. Its history also reflects the evolution of social customs: it was originally an exclusively male dance, with men dressing as women for the sake of modesty, before opening up to the participation of both sexes. Today, it is mainly young people, aged 16 to 30, who take to the square to dance in pairs, wearing traditional costumes under the gaze of the entire village.

• Up to 24 couples performing the dance figures
• Dancers in traditional attire, aged 16 to 30
• Performances on Carnival Sunday and Shrove Tuesday
• Banquets with local products accompanying the festivities

The sequence of figures, learned year after year by the younger generations, is a true oral tradition: you learn by watching, you repeat, and you pass it on. It is no coincidence that the Quadriglia of Salento is listed among the intangible heritage expressions of the Campania region.

The Zeza comedy

Alongside the Quadriglia, the Salento Carnival hosts the Zeza. The name is a diminutive of Lucrezia, the wife of Pulcinella in the Commedia dell'Arte: a sung and acted scene performed in the street, which originated in Naples, likely in the second half of the 17th century, and later spread throughout the provinces of the old Kingdom of Naples. The plot is always the same—Zeza, Pulcinella, their daughter Vastianella, and the suitor Don Nicola—but every village interprets it in its own way, with its own verses and music.

In February 2026, the local Cilento press noted that in Salento, along with Sacco, the Zeza comedy returned as one of the most authentic moments of the Salerno Carnival: a sign that this form of popular theater, which has disappeared elsewhere, still thrives in the inland villages.

A festival that also passes through the table

As throughout the Cilento, the Salento Carnival is also a gastronomic festival: banquets featuring traditional rustic products accompany the performances and turn the square into a place of conviviality. The village, after all, is known in the area for its confectionery tradition and for rustic dishes such as foglie e patane (wild greens with potatoes) or the struffolone, a glazed festive pastry. Here, dance and food intertwine in a single act of sharing.

When it takes place

The event follows the movable calendar of Carnival: the appointments fall on Carnival Sunday and Shrove Tuesday, meaning the dates change every year. In 2026, the two days were February 15 and 17; in 2025, with a later Easter, they fell on March 2 and 4. Those planning a trip should therefore check the liturgical calendar of the current year before booking.

An itinerary through the Cilentano Carnival

Salento is not an isolated case: the entire Cilento and Alburni area experiences a Carnival of rural roots, made of rituals rather than parades. Within a few kilometers, you can encounter the Quadriglia in the square of Gioi, the Maschkarata of San Mauro Cilento, the agrarian ritual of the twelve months in Aquara, the Carnuluvaro bonfire with traditional masks in Cosentini di Montecorice, the burning of the Vavo puppet in Trentinara, and the "poor man's carnival" of Olevano sul Tusciano. Visiting Salento during these days means entering a cultural system, not just attending a single show: it is the best way to get to know the Cilento out of season, when the villages still belong to those who live there.