Feast of the Assumption in Castellace with the Calabria Tarantella Festival

Borgo Castellace · Oppido Mamertina, Costa Viola, Calabria

14 August 2026

On 14 August 2026 Castellace, a hamlet of Oppido Mamertina in Calabria, celebrates its patron saint: the Madonna Assunta, Our Lady of the Assumption. It is the most important day of the year for the roughly five hundred people who live there and for the emigrants who come home for it. The feast begins at dawn with fireworks and continues with the procession and its cry of «Evviva Maria!», the Giganti — large papier-mâché figures that parade through the illuminated streets — and the «ballu du ciucciu», the donkey figure that shoots pyrotechnics. At 10 pm comes the Calabria Tarantella Festival, promoted by the municipal administration with the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria as part of the Aria d'estate mamertina programme: an evening of Calabrian folk music and dance in the hamlet that at the end of July had already hosted the accordion and tambourine gathering. Castellace lies 214 metres above sea level, five and a half kilometres from Oppido Mamertina, on the southern edge of the Gioia Tauro plain.

14 August in Castellace

In Castellace the eve of Ferragosto is not an eve: it is the day of the feast. The hamlet's patron saint is the Madonna Assunta, Our Lady of the Assumption, and she is celebrated on 14 August, not on the 15th as elsewhere. It is the date that fills the village, the one that brings back the emigrants and the families who moved down to the plain or up north.

In the Aria d'estate mamertina 2026 programme the day is listed at 10 pm with the Calabria Tarantella Festival, promoted by the municipal administration of Oppido Mamertina together with the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria. But the festival is the tail end of a day that begins much earlier, at dawn.

The traditions: the Giants, the fireworks, the ballu du ciucciu

The feast of the Madonna Assunta in Castellace announces itself early in the morning with fireworks. Through the day the streets of the village fill with lights and stalls, and the Giganti parade through them: large papier-mâché figures, a tradition shared with several towns along the Tyrrhenian coast and the Strait of Messina, and which in Castellace survives as part of the patronal rite.

The procession crosses the village accompanied by the cry «Evviva Maria!», which marks the passage of the statue. The evening closes with fireworks and with the «ballu du ciucciu», the donkey figure that shoots pyrotechnics: the most anticipated and loudest moment, when the square closes in around the spinning, sparking structure.

These rites repeat every year in the same order. Anyone arriving for the first time finds a genuine village feast, not a reconstruction staged for visitors: distances are short, everyone knows everyone, and a stranger is noticed straight away.

The Calabria Tarantella Festival

At 10 pm the feast gives way to the Calabria Tarantella Festival, the musical part of the evening. The festival is a format dedicated to the tarantella and to Calabrian folk music traditions which in 2026 has already stopped in Tropea, in piazza Cannone, with a formula built on concerts following one another through the evening and dancing open to the public.

The choice of Castellace is no accident. On 30 and 31 July the hamlet had already hosted the accordion and tambourine gathering in piazza Stranges: the diatonic accordion, the tambourine, the zampogna bagpipe and the chitarra battente are the instruments of Calabrian tarantella, and around here they are still played at feasts, not only on stage. On 19 August, and again on the 29th, popular theatre and end-of-summer music will return to Castellace.

The poster does not list the groups performing on 14 August: the programme gives only the festival title and the start time.

Castellace: the village, its history, how to get there

Castellace is a hamlet of Oppido Mamertina with just over five hundred inhabitants, 214 metres above sea level and five and a half kilometres from the main town, on the southern edge of the Gioia Tauro plain. It is reached along the SS 112 bis road climbing from Oppido.

Its history is long: archaeological evidence points to settlement as far back as the Magna Graecia period, and in 1195 Emperor Henry VI donated the village to the archbishop of Reggio, a donation later confirmed by Frederick II. Like Oppido, Castellace was struck by the Calabrian earthquake of 1783, which destroyed the parish church and forced the inhabitants to abandon the old village.

The parish of Santa Maria Assunta belongs to the Diocese of Oppido Mamertina-Palmi. The village has a Mediterranean climate: mild winters, averaging around 12 degrees in January, and hot summers, averaging almost 30 degrees in August.

What to know before you go

The Aria d'estate mamertina poster lists no tickets, advance sales or prices for the evening: the patronal feast and the concert take place in the village's public spaces. The times of the religious celebrations and of the procession are not given on the municipal programme, which only flags the 10 pm event.

The practical advice is to arrive early: Castellace is a small village, the streets are narrow, and on the evening of 14 August you essentially have to come by car. If you want to combine the evening with a few days in the area, you can browse the holiday homes on this portal, while for a stop in Oppido there are the local businesses.

The rest of the summer programme is on the Aria d'estate mamertina 2026 page; other events in the area are in the events section.

Frequently asked questions

When is the Madonna Assunta celebrated in Castellace?

On 14 August every year, not on the 15th as in many other towns. In 2026 it falls on a Friday: the feast takes up the whole day and the municipal programme lists the Calabria Tarantella Festival at 10 pm.

What are the Giants that parade through the village?

They are large papier-mâché figures carried through the streets during the patronal feast: a tradition found in several towns of Tyrrhenian Calabria and the Strait of Messina area, and which in Castellace is part of the 14 August rite along with the lights and the stalls.

What is the «ballu du ciucciu»?

It is the tradition that closes the feast: the figure of a donkey that shoots fireworks. Together with the dawn fireworks and the final display, it is one of the most recognisable moments of the day.

What is the Calabria Tarantella Festival?

It is a festival dedicated to the tarantella and Calabrian folk music, which in 2026 also stopped in Tropea, in piazza Cannone. In Castellace it is scheduled for 14 August at 10 pm, promoted by the municipality of Oppido Mamertina with the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria. The poster does not list the performing groups.

Where is Castellace and how do I get there?

Castellace is a hamlet of Oppido Mamertina, in the province of Reggio Calabria: 214 metres above sea level, just over five hundred inhabitants, five and a half kilometres from the centre of Oppido. It is reached along the SS 112 bis road, on the southern edge of the Gioia Tauro plain.

Do I need a ticket for the evening?

The Aria d'estate mamertina poster lists no prices, advance sales or box office. The patronal feast and the concert take place in the village's public spaces.

Are there other events in Castellace during the summer?

Yes. On 19 August at 9.30 pm the play «Giovanni e la Morte» by the I Baroncini association is staged in piazza Stranges, and on 29 August at 7.30 pm the fourth edition of «Note in una notte di fine estate» takes place. At the end of July the village hosted the accordion and tambourine gathering.

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