The Death of Carnival and the Twelve Months

Shrove Tuesday in San Nicola la Strada

In San Nicola la Strada, a town in the province of Caserta, Campania, Shrove Tuesday doesn't end with confetti: it ends with a funeral. «The Death of Carnival and the Twelve Months» (La morte di Carnevale e i Rurece Mise) is the satirical ritual with which the town bids farewell to Vicienzo 'e Carnavale, the character who embodies every form of human excess, guiding the community from the noise and chaos of Carnival to the sobriety, penance, and fasting of Lent. It is an ancient ritual, as the organizers define it, «that our town continues to cherish».

The funeral procession through the city streets

Everything begins in the afternoon, when the coffin of Vicienzo 'e Carnavale leaves the courtyard on Via Appia, pushed by masked volunteers. The funeral procession, escorted by the Local Police and Civil Protection, travels through the city center amidst exaggerated wailing, professional mourners dressed in black, and laughter. In the past, the route has touched Via Le Taglie, Via Patturelli, Via Bronzetti, Viale Italia, and Viale Europa, gathering families, curious onlookers, and children along the way. The tone is intentionally parodic, because the mourning for Carnival is, in reality, a collective celebration.

«I Rurece Mise», the chant of the twelve months

The procession concludes in the courtyard of the Associazione Nostra Signora di Lourdes, at Via Appia 133, where «I Rurece Mise» is performed—a dialect chant of the twelve months of the year. Each month takes voice and form in a character who presents themselves to the public with verses in the Campanian dialect, blending rural irony with images from the agricultural calendar. It is a form of popular theater widespread throughout the Terra di Lavoro and the Mezzogiorno, linked to Carnival because, in the ancient Roman calendar, the new year began right around the end of February: singing the months meant warding off bad luck and wishing for a good harvest.

The farce, the lament, and the burning of the effigy

After the chant comes the most anticipated part: the actual performance of «The Death of Carnival». This includes the wake and the lament, the comic duet between Signor Capitone and Pulcinella, and the reading of the will, entrusted to a lawyer who distributes improbable bequests among those present. The ending is always the same: the effigy is set on fire, and with it, the excesses of the past year are symbolically burned. The audience participates, responds to the jokes, and recognizes their neighbors beneath the makeup.

A heritage entrusted to children

The most striking feature of recent editions is the role of the youngest participants: it is the children of San Nicola la Strada who play the twelve months, learning the dialect and the vocabulary of the local farming culture. The organizers call them «guardians of the community memory», and it is precisely this generational transfer that ensures the tradition does not become a museum piece. Alongside them, adult actors from the town perform in a cast that mixes different ages, professions, and families.

Who organizes it

• Cultural Association «La Barca di Teseo», under the artistic direction of Germano Iacelli, who brought the performance back to life;
• Pro Loco Calatia, which grants its patronage to the event;
• Associazione Nostra Signora di Lourdes, which hosts the show in its courtyard and provides logistical support;
• the Municipality of San Nicola la Strada, with Local Police and Civil Protection overseeing the procession.

Why it's worth attending

This is not a carnival of allegorical floats nor a show built for tourists: it is a neighborhood festival that has become a city-wide appointment, free and open to everyone, where the Campanian dialect is the language of the stage and the street is the true theater. Those visiting Caserta and its Royal Palace during Carnival days will find here, just a few minutes away, one of the most vibrant examples of popular theater in the province: an evening of choral participation that holds together memory, local identity, and fun.