Annual Mercer County Italian American Festival opens Thursday
WEST WINDSOR — The end of September in Mercer County means crisp fall air, changing colors on the trees and, most importantly, the annual celebration where all of central New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania head to Mercer County Park to share their love of everything Italian. This year, festival organizers have added an extra day to celebrate, opening one day earlier, on Thursday, Sept. 27, with none other than legendary Philadelphia DJ, Jerry Blavat, “the Geater with the Heater,” the man with the number one dance party in the Delaware Valley and the backstory on all the oldies groups.
Joe Piscopo, a familiar face to festival attendees, whether in the Roma Bank booth or on stage, returns to introduce his long time friend, Jerry Blavat, and join him in officially opening the 13th edition of the festival on its new day. With the expansion to four days this year, the festival retains many of its long-time favorite attractions while adding several new ones.
Cultural Theater
Located inside the Heritage Pavilion (Mercer County Ice Skating Center), the Cultural Theater features several new presentations and one long-time favorite. Sure to be fascinating for former Chambersburg (Trenton) residents is “The Beginning of Italians in Chambersburg” presented by Tom Frascella, historian for the San Felese Society of New Jersey. Tom will cover the Italian community’s influence in the early era of Chambersburg. By “early era” he means the late 1800s. Frascella’s presentation takes place at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday. Other theater happenings are: a presentation on Giuseppe Garibaldi by the Italian class at Nottingham High School, “How to Order the Perfect Italian Wine” by Vittoria Vettori, and the favorite year after year, “Fresh Pizzelle Made Easy” by Catherine DiCostanzo, with free samples provided. See the festival website for the complete Cultural Theater schedule.
Entertainment
Dance the night away on Thursday with Jerry Blavat starting at 6 p.m. Friday entertainment highlights include Italian favorites, opera, Italian American favorites and a little bit of the blues as Italian natives Moreno Fruzzetti and Don Felice, and New Yorker Cristina Fontanelli perform on the Roma Bank Stage and local bluesman Paul Plumeri appears in the Cabaret Tent.
On Saturday, Italian rockers, Enrico Capuano and TRock, perform followed by The Duprees, who will celebrate their 50th anniversary with festival attendees at 8:30 p.m. on the Roma Bank Stage. The N.J. Lottery Fireworks Spectacular lights up the sky immediately following The Duprees performance and closes out Saturday night. Other Saturday highlights include Jimmy Alleva, the Joe Scannella Orchestra, and Chris Macchio.
On Sunday, be sure to catch the rare Mercer County appearance of the amazing U.S. Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon. With bayoneted rifles flying from Marine to Marine, the lineup of crisp dress blue uniforms, and the rhythmic slap of rifles caught by leather-gloved hands - the Silent Drill Platoon exemplifies Marine Corps discipline, precision and skill. They perform at 3:30 p.m. in front of the Roma Bank Stage. Other Sunday highlights include the Greater Princeton Youth Orchestra, the Len Enourato Orchestra, the Abbott and Costello Show, and O’ Sole Trio. For the children, Penny and the Puppettes perform Friday, Saturday and Sunday. A complete ntertainment schedule may be found on the festival website.
As family and friends can attest – it’s not an Italian celebration without food. Italian specialties of all varieties will be available from the Italian restaurants, caterers and vendors. Fried Calamari, Roast Pork with Broccoli Rabe, Vodka Rigatoni, and Pasta Fagioli are a few of the offerings, along with delicious Italian desserts including Cannoli and Pasticiotti. Risoldi’s Market joins the festival for the first time, bringing their homemade Italian specialties including Ricotta Cheese Cake and Italian Cheese Bread. For dining comfort, covered dining areas are provided by K. McCoy Insurance Agency, Rose Hill Assisted Living Community and PNC Bank. Enjoy a glass of wine from Hopewell Valley Vineyards or an ice cold Michelob Ultra or Birra Moretti in the Beer and Wine Garden.
Bocce
Whether you want to learn the game, play for fun or compete in a tournament, you can enjoy Italy’s favorite pastime at the Mercer County Italian American Festival. New for 2012, the bocce court, formerly located in the Heritage Pavilion, is now located under cover in the food piazza on the main festival grounds.
Italian Market Tent
It’s an Italian market right here in Mercer County. In the Market Tent, merchants sell everything from Italian flags and Italian-made handbags to imported olive oils and fresh-made mozzarella. Additional offerings include Italian novelties, CDs, cheesecakes and more.
Heritage Pavilion
In the Heritage Pavilion, located in the Ice Skating Center building, shop for jewelry, learn about Italian organizations and peruse the ever growing display of Italian and Italian American Memorabilia presented by Hutchinson Plumbing, Heating & Cooling. In honor of a tradition that was brought here by Italian immigrants from the Naples region, a statue of the Madonna di Casandrino, along with other saints, will be on display. A procession with the statue of the Madonna di Casandrino was the tradition on which the “Feast of Lights” in Chambersburg was based. This tradition has a history that started in Italy more than 1,000 years ago. While in the Heritage Pavilion, be sure
Cristina Fontanelli
Don Felice to make a wish in the near life-sized replica of the Trevi Fountain of Rome. Proceeds benefit Ryan’s Quest.
Football at the Festival
The Capital Satellites TV Sports Café will show college and NFL football, and maybe baseball, all weekend.
Children’s Activities
Amusement rides, a petting zoo, pony rides, face painting, a puppet theater, and even bocce, are available for children completing a fun weekend for the entire family.
About The Festival
The 13th Annual Italian American Festival of Mercer County takes place Thursday, Sept. 27 through Sunday, Sept. 30 at Mercer County Park on Old Trenton Road in West Windsor. Festival hours are 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Thursday; noon to 10 p.m. on Friday; noon to 11 p.m. on Saturday; noon to 9 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is $3. Children, age 12 and younger, are admitted free compliments of XFINITY, only from Comcast. Convenient, on-site parking is also free. The festival is a rain or shine event with plenty of covered areas for guest comfort. No petsermitted. For more information, contact the Mercer County Italian American Festival Association at (609) 631-7544 or visit the festival website at www.ItalianAmericanFestival. com or on Facebook.