The Venice Carnival that pushes itself on the mainland: all events in Mestre

Venice offers a variegated program of events and shows for the Carnival to which you can participate, but in addition to guaranteeing a special entertainment, it goes beyond the Lagoon, embracing neighboring towns that participate in the holidays, offering in turn days of shows and fun.

Let's find out together the official events of the Venice Carnival 2020 - "The Game, Love and Madness" from 8 to 25 February in Mestre.

The Mestre Carnival Street Show

The 4th edition of the Mestre Carnival Street Show starts: a very rich walking show of artists and acrobats who will celebrate the Venice Carnival 2020 in Piazza Erminio Ferretto, set up with a stage through which you can also attend concerts and unpredictable and irreverent shows, both for adults and children. Thanks to the particular installations, Mestre will be filled with art and colors, spreading through all the streets and arcades of the city starting from the Central Square.

If you intend to reach the center of Mestre by car, you can park for free in the neighboring squares or on the blue stripes at the edge of the road. Here is the schedule:

  • Sunday 9 February, from 17:00 to 18:30 - Grand Opening "Amoris Causa"
  • Saturday 15 February, from 16:30 to 18.30
  • Sunday 16 February, from 11:00 to 13:00 and from 16:30 to 18:30
  • Thursday 20 February, from 16.30 to 18.30
  • Friday 21 February, from 16.30 to 18.30
  • Saturday 22 February, from 16.30 to 18.30
  • Sunday 23 February, from 11:00 to 13:00 and from 16:30 to 18:30
  • Monday 24 February, from 16.30 to 18.30
  • Tuesday 25 February, from 16.30 to 18.30

The Woman of Fire: Marietta Barovier Pioneer of venetian pearls

On Tuesday 18 February you cannot miss the fantastic theatrical representation of the story of Marietta Barovier at the Candiani Cultural Center in Mestre: from 19:00 to 20:30 you will be catapulted into the fifteenth century, during the years of the birth of an artist who made the love for his passion a real job. Marietta Barovier was an avant-garde woman, she conceived the “rosette pearl”, obtained by associating the design of the glass rod with a rose. In doing so he created a pearl with a 12-pointed motif, similar to stars or petals, which almost always have the same colour combination, meaning: white, blue, white, red and finally blue. And she was the first entrepreneurial woman who obtained permission from the Serenissima to open a furnace. Admission for the enthralling show is free while seats last. In case you are unable to participate, you can recover the show through replicas scattered throughout the Lagoon City:

  • Wednesday 19 February, at 18:00, at the Pio X Cinema in Piazza Baldassarre Galuppi, Burano
  • Friday 21 February, at 19:00, at the Groggia Theater in Venice;
  • Saturday 22 February, at 18:00, at the Lino Toffolo theater in Murano.

The Fables of Gianni Rodari narrated by Alessandro Bressanello

At the M9 Auditorium in Mestre located in Via Giovanni Pascoli 11, from 18:30 to 19:30 on Sunday 23 February, you can participate in the show “The fables of Gianni Rodari”, read and interpreted by Alessandro Bressanello. The event, suitable for families with children aged 5 to 10, commemorates the centenary of the birth of Gianni Rodari, an award-winning poet and writer loved the world over thanks to the creation of literary works intended for an audience of infants. Alessandro Bressanello, Venetian actor and director, will entertain you for an hour reading and interpreting the most beautiful tales of the author, accompanied by a magical and fantastic show. Admission is free and free while seats last.

  • Sunday 23 February from 18:30 to 19:30 in M9 Auditorium

The Flight of the Donkey

To conclude the Mestre Carnival Street Show, on Sunday 23 February from 11:30 to 13:00 the streets of the center will be the stage of the awaited “Flight of the Donkey”, an ironic and funny version of the “Flight of the Eagle”, the twin event that will take place in Venice. The large inflatable donkey silhouette will fly over the heads of the public who will look up to see it hovering in the sky, coming down from the Clock Tower in Piazza Ferretto. The last day of the party will continue, then, with a long marathon of shows characterized by musical performances and street artists, shows aimed at fun for young and old until late afternoon.

  • Sunday 23 February from 11:30 to 13:00