There will be a Festa Italiana 2022 after all.
The celebration of Italian culture and food will run Sept. 24-25 at the Italian Community Center (631 E. Chicago St.). The festival was last held in 2019, with COVID-19 cancellations in both 2020 and 2021.
In April, Festa Italiana, which is put on by the ICC, announced that it would not be holding the planned July festival at the nearby Henry Maier Festival Park, largely due to financial concerns. Since the pandemic, ICC revenue has decreased due to a lack of facility rentals and parking lot fees, which put the cost of the festival park out of reach, according to the Milwaukee Business Journal.
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This year’s September festival will be primarily located in the ICC parking lot, as well as two indoor ballrooms, which will lower costs. It will include the traditional Catholic Mass and procession, as well as food and drink vendors, an art exhibit and one entertainment stage. There will also be bocce, the Italian Idol singing competition and performances by Milwaukee’s Italian folk dance group, Tradizione Vivente, which has been performing in the city for over 70 years.
Further detail on vendors, entertainers and admission prices will be announced in upcoming months, though organizers did tell the Business Journal that the price of admission would be lower than previous Festas.
