Melissa Verrilli on Carnevale's “Coincidental” Timing With Lent

By: Melissa Verrilli

February 15, 2010

The word Carnevale instantly signifies fun. And this definitely was true for opening weekend of Carnevale in Venice. The festival starts two weeks before Ash Wednesday, but after reflecting on the event, I realized that this timing has become more of a coincidence than significant. I went with a handful of other Georgetown students, ready to masquerade, take on the crowds, and ooh and ahh at the decorative costumes. We arrived on Friday, the day before Carnevale began, and the overnight transformation was clearly noticeable. I was among the tourist crowd, wearing a mask that I had purchased for eight euros from a street vendor near the train station, camera in hand, ready to snap pictures of Venetian canals and dressed up revelers. On Saturday evening, we crowded into Piazza San Marco to see the opening show. No formal program was publicized, so we really had no idea what to expect. However, it began with a non-traditional pre-show: Former coal mine workers who lost their jobs danced around with less and less articles of clothing to get the crowd excited—it felt a little bit like Village People.

But the real show was an hour-long play with comical relief and farce surrounding the search for the letter to Venice. It concluded when the letter was finally found and read, praising Venice for all her beauty and wonder. The following day presented itself with much better weather, clear and sunny, allowing people in costume to make their grand entrance. We milled around Piazza San Marco all morning taking pictures of people, listening to different musicians, and throwing confetti. Then at noon the much anticipated Volo dell’'Angelo began as a woman flew down form the Campanile (with the help of a harness attached to a zip line). During her flight, the speakers played the Hallelujah Chorus, and I was reminded of the religious aspect of this festival. Carnevale is a celebration leading up to the beginning of Lent, Ash Wednesday. In the United States, we typically compact this into just one day, Fat Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras. Since we, as Christians, are supposed to give something up during Lent, Fat Tuesday is the last day to indulge before engaging in the 40 days of solidarity with Christ. However, it seemed that Carnevale was not about indulging, it was really about the pride of the Venetians.

Overall, the event seemed separate from any sort of religious significance or reference. While there is a lot of drinking and eating, particularly bakery sweets, this is not to say that people were deliberately sinning or turning away from God; rather, the emphasis of Carnevale was the festivities, entertainment, and Venetian culture and pride. The event is also heavily catered towards tourists; all the bakeries, restaurants, hotels, and cafes prepare for this time of the year, knowing the city will be flooded with visitors. The downfall to the heightened tourism is that there is less and less local participation in Carnevale.

When I returned home to Florence that Sunday, I told my host mom about the highlights of my weekend, and asked her if she thought of Carnevale as a religious event. She looked at me with confusion; so I went on to explain that Carnevale ends with the beginning of Lent. She understood, but simply said "No, it is not relevant to religion." We then continued to talk about Carnevale and the Venetian pride that holds it together. Even though Carnevale is divorced from its relationship to Lent, the event still merits a large amount of cultural significance, from the handmade masks to the Frittate di Venezia. Every year, Carnevale serves as a lively winter festival, bringing people together and providing plenty of entertainment for travelers abroad.

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