Events in Penne, 2008

This list is now mostly complete for 2008. You may also find event dates on the official penne event site. Or you can look at last year's events to get an idea of what else is likely to be happening.

• May 1st - not actually in Penne, but Coccullo (about an hour's drive), listed here as it is the most dramatic of all the traditional festivals in Abruzzo: the Festival of San Domenico, with the procession of the snake handlers. Get to handle live snakes ... The festival is always on the first Thursday in May; this year it is Mayday, which is a bank holiday.
• May 7th Feast of San Massimo, patron saint of Penne, with procession carrying the saint's effigy through the streets
• May 31st - June 2nd: 2nd Penne Agricultural Fair: traditions, flavours, and values from the Vestini region.
• June 26th: Vincenzo Tartaglia and his orchestra of 13 guitarists and 9 keyboard players play in the Hotel dei Vestini. Entrance free.
• July and August open air performances: almost every evening through July and August there is an open air concert or performance of some kind in the Belvedere (enter from the Piazza dei Martiri di Penne, the smaller square next to Penne main square, Piazza Luca da Penne) or in the clositers of San Domenico (also just off Piazza Luca da Penne). Performances start at 9 in the evening unless otherwise stated and are free
• July 12th: Cabaret 'La Corrida Show' in Largo San Francesco (by the main gate) at 8pm.
• July 15th: Mozart Concerto in San Domenico cloisters (off Piazza di Luca)
• July 15th - 20th: Pescara Jazz Festival, one of the biggest Jazz Festivals in Europe. Obviously not in Penne, but just down the road. This year includes Keith Jarrett, Gary Peacock, Herbie Hancock, the Maria Schnieder Orchestra and many others. More details on the PescaraJazz website.
• July 19th: performance of Gogol's play 'The Inspector' on the Belvedere, starting at 9pm.
• July 20th: Summer Carnival, with street parades and masked ball in Largo S. Francesco, starting at 9 pm.
• July 25th: dialect play 'Du Rap Strascinat' on the Belvedere, starting at 9pm.
• July 26th: from 5-9pm in the old town centre, the 25th Penne Evening competitions for sprinters
• July 27th: dialect play 'La brocca rotta' on the Belvedere, starting at 9pm.
• July 28th: theatre and music therapy, with the play 'Ti regalero una rosa' in the cloister of San Domenico (off Piazza di Luca)
• July 29th: theatre and music therapy, with the play 'Una topastra al mercato' in the cloister of San Domenico (off Piazza di Luca)
• July 30th/31st: 'Wandering through the times of the Vestini', on the Belvedere at 9pm. No description available...
• August 1st: Choral concert in cloisters of San Domenico starting at 9pm.
• August 2nd/3rd: Jazz and Wine, in the courtyard of the archaeological museum starting at 9pm
• August 4th: Dance Theatre 'Nel tuo sonno non dimenticarmi', in the cloisters of San Domenico
• August 5th: the Abruzzo Regional Theatre group perform
• August 8th: Video dance and fitness show, on the Belvedere starting at 9pm
• August 9th: Rodeo under the stars, in the town stadium (by the swimming pool half way down the main hill into Penne), starting at 8pm
• August 9th: Dance with Luigi and Perluigi on the Belvedere (organized by AUSER, the Italian equivalent of SAGA)
• August 9th: 'White Night' in the old town centre - everything stays open till dawn
• August 10th: Song on the Belvedere, the 2nd Vestini Music Festival
• August 11th: dialect play 'L'udienze e' aperte' on the Belvedere, starting at 9pm.
• August 17th markets ('Mercatini Agora' - I don't know what this is!) in the old town centre from 8am to midnight
• August 21-24 Harvest Festival in Roccafinadamo, 11 kilometres outside Penne itself. Log-sawing competitions, livestock shows, demonstrations of traditional crafts, and food
• The Palio of the 6 Parishes. Each evening involves historical re-enactments, competition between the 6 historical neighbourhoods, and food, open-air concerts, etc. Dates for this year have been announced, but not the full details. On the pattern of previous years it should be as follows:
  • 28th August: Day 1 Re-enactment of the procession of the two princesses and the making of peace between the neighbourhoods. Archery competition
  • 29th August: Day 2 Procession of the two princesses. Sword fighting competioni and climbing the greasy pole
  • 30th August: Day 3 Procession of the two princesses. Donkey racing, and final decision on the winning neighbourhood
• September 4th: Guitar Concert in the Cloisters of San Domenico at 9pm
• September 6th: Jazz Dance in the Cloisters of San Domenico starting at 9 pm
• September 7th: Antonello Persico sings the great Italian protest singer, Fabrizio d'Andre, on the Belvedere at 9pm
• September 13th: choral groups from around Italy sing in the Cloisters of San Domenico, starting at 9pm
• September 14th Dance show in the Cloisters of San Domenico
• September 20th all day: indoor climbing in the Sports Centre (Penne has previously played host to the world championships)
• September 27th-28th: Free guided tours to churchs and museums in the town as part of the European Cultural Heritage days
• November 29th: Finals of the Penne-Moscow international literary prize, with results from the juries of local citizens and students. Takes place in the Vestini Hotel (open to the public, in Italian)
• December 14th,21st,28th: Street artists working round the historic centre
• December 19th, 20.30pm: Christmas concert in the cathedral
• December 21st, 16.30pm: Choral concert in the church of S.Annunziata
• December 24th, 17.00pm: Father Christmas arrives in the Piazza di Luca