Cappelle sul Tavo (Abruzzo): Palio of the Dancing Dolls

To kick off ferragosto this friendly battle, also called the Palio delle Pupe, amongst 14 neighboring towns in Abruzzo puts on a show for spectators. Pupe are papier-mache lifesized dolls and are covered in fireworks. For over 40 years these dolls have a dance “battle” where representatives from the towns climb up inside the doll and perform a dance to folk music that was originally done in hopes of a fertile harvest.  What’s most impressive though, is that the fireworks are going off as they perform! At the end of the dance, the best doll and performance wins.

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Photo credit: Fiore Silvestro Barbato, flickr.com