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Procida 2022, the Procession of the Mysteries is back

Friday 15 of April the spectacular procession of 30 artistic artifacts, made with the participation of two thousand citizens. And with the “Ritual Project” the sounds of Holy Week give life to a digital archive
A strongly identity ritual that has its roots at the end of the sixteenth century and involves thousands of islanders: on Friday 15 of April the Procession of the Mysteries returns to Procida, included this year in the program of the Italian Capital of Culture 2022.

The construction of the Mysteries - artistic artifacts inspired by episodes from the Old and New Testament and made with various materials (papier-mâché, wood and other poor materials, with particular attention to reuse) - was started in recent months and has given life to 30 tables , which will be carried by hand through the center of the island, from the village of Terra Murata to Marina Grande.

The event is organized by the Congregation of the Immaculate Conception of Turchini and follows the procession of twelve hooded apostles for adoration in churches, scheduled on Thursday, starting at 6.00 pm. The next day, at 5.30 in the morning, a prayer vigil anticipates the procession of the Dead Christ and the Addolorata towards the Abbey of San Michele. At 7.30 the most awaited and spectacular moment kicks off: the Dead Christ and the Mysteries make their way through the crowd, telling - together with the episodes from the Bible - also pages related to contemporaneity, thanks to the talent and imagination of the associations that work there, "The island of the Mysteries”,“ The boys of the Mysteries ”and“ Good Friday ”. Hundreds of faithful dressed in a white robe surmounted by a turquoise cloak, the so-called “mozzetto”, carry them by hand. To make the atmosphere more evocative, the Città di Procida music band, which sings the funeral marches.
At 8.00 pm, the Via Crucis is scheduled with the sacred images of the Dead Christ and Our Lady of Sorrows.
"The return of our Procession of the Mysteries after two years of forced stop due to Covid and in such an important moment for our island is a new reason for pride for us and an opportunity to tell Italy and the world a of our main traditions ”, comments the mayor of Procida, Dino Ambrosino. The Municipality of Procida has foreseen - from Thursday to Tuesday - a series of traffic blocks.

The digital archive
During the days of the celebrations, the cultural program of Procida 2022 also includes the start of the laboratory that will give life to the "Ritual Project", a sound journey of multimedia installations to discover the island's most ancient ritual practices. On the night of Holy Thursday and on the morning of Friday, a team of technicians will immerse themselves in the evocative island atmospheres for the creation of a digital audio archive on the rituals of the Procidan Holy Week. Under the guidance of Leonardo Scotto of Monaco, all the stages will be followed, "capturing" the famous and dramatic sound of the trumpet, which seems to suggest a continuity with the alarm of the war sirens, the songs of Christ at Terra Murata, the drums and the chains, the funeral march of the grieving one. Legacy for the island, the work done by professional sound engineers will be the starting point for the research and reworking of the musicians Pier Paolo Polcari (Almamegretta) and ubikdaniele.
"The goal, by making tradition and digital innovation dialogue, is to protect the past, preserve identities, make generations communicate with each other and, above all, promote the immense intangible cultural heritage of the island of Procida in a contemporary key", explains the director of Procida 2022, Agostino Riitano.

Procida 2022 is a project of the Municipality of Procida, supported by the MiC and the Campania Region with funds from the 2014-2020 Campania POC. Main sponsor is Voiello; gold partner Anm, Asl Napoli 2 Nord, Caremar, Eav, Snav and Trenitalia; bronze partner Coldiretti Campania and Marina di Procida. Media partner is Rai