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It was February 1873 when a bright young group sitting around a table at the Caffè del Casino in Viareggio had the great idea to have an annual parade of floats to celebrate carnival time. They wanted a parade out in the piazzas, in the streets and most of all, among the people. That is the story of how Viareggio Carnival, which attracts thousands of visitors every year, was created.
The parade floats take centre stage each year and usually represent satirical versions of politicians, figures from popular culture or show business. The floats are always based on the hot topics of the day and treat even the thorniest of issues with irony and satire. From Craxi to Prodi and from Berlusconi to Dario Fo – no public figures are safe from the satirical humour of Viareggio’s float makers.
The floats parade through the crowds along Viareggio’s seafront every Sunday for 4 weeks until Mardi Gras. For 4 weeks on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings, the 4 districts (or ‘rioni’) of Viareggio hold large open air street parties with music and masked balls until the early hours. Open air restaurants offer local specialities, mainly fresh seafood dishes, and stages are put up on street corners where free live concerts are performed. Bands and DJs give it their all – of course all dressed up and wearing carnival masks.
The parties thrown by each ‘rione’ are the heart and soul of the carnival celebrations. Rione Torre del Lago give a party the first week, Rione Marco Polo the second, Rione Darsena the third and Rione Croce Verde the fourth and final week which closes the celebrations.
For those of you who still want more once the parties have finished, there are tonnes of clubs open up and down the coast, where you can dance the night away till dawn if you want. The dance clubs in Versilia compete against each other for the best masked evenings at carnival time.
The official mask, or disguise, worn at Viareggio Carnival is that of Burlamacco, used for the first time at the 1931 carnival and painted by Uberto Bonetti. This carnival figure is a clown dressed in the classic costume of the Commedia dell’Arte, which include a red and white checked all-in-one suit like Harlequin, a pom pom that looks like it could have come from Pierrot’s shirt, a white ruffle à la Capitan Spaventa and a red cape like Rugantino. Next to Burlamacco in Bonetti’s original picture, the artist also drew an attractive female bather called Ondina dressed in a typical 1930s swimsuit.
The parade floats take centre stage each year and usually represent satirical versions of politicians, figures from popular culture or show business. The floats are always based on the hot topics of the day and treat even the thorniest of issues with irony and satire. From Craxi to Prodi and from Berlusconi to Dario Fo – no public figures are safe from the satirical humour of Viareggio’s float makers.
The floats parade through the crowds along Viareggio’s seafront every Sunday for 4 weeks until Mardi Gras. For 4 weeks on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings, the 4 districts (or ‘rioni’) of Viareggio hold large open air street parties with music and masked balls until the early hours. Open air restaurants offer local specialities, mainly fresh seafood dishes, and stages are put up on street corners where free live concerts are performed. Bands and DJs give it their all – of course all dressed up and wearing carnival masks.
The parties thrown by each ‘rione’ are the heart and soul of the carnival celebrations. Rione Torre del Lago give a party the first week, Rione Marco Polo the second, Rione Darsena the third and Rione Croce Verde the fourth and final week which closes the celebrations.
For those of you who still want more once the parties have finished, there are tonnes of clubs open up and down the coast, where you can dance the night away till dawn if you want. The dance clubs in Versilia compete against each other for the best masked evenings at carnival time.
The official mask, or disguise, worn at Viareggio Carnival is that of Burlamacco, used for the first time at the 1931 carnival and painted by Uberto Bonetti. This carnival figure is a clown dressed in the classic costume of the Commedia dell’Arte, which include a red and white checked all-in-one suit like Harlequin, a pom pom that looks like it could have come from Pierrot’s shirt, a white ruffle à la Capitan Spaventa and a red cape like Rugantino. Next to Burlamacco in Bonetti’s original picture, the artist also drew an attractive female bather called Ondina dressed in a typical 1930s swimsuit.
