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SCRANTON — “Fly me to the moon and let me play among the stars. Let me see what spring is like on Jupiter and Mars.”
If you’re among the fans who tend to swoon whenever they hear Frank Sinatra’s old tunes, you can stop by La Festa Italiana’s main stage at 6 p.m. Sunday and let Sinatra tribute artist Chris DiMattio transport you to, well, the moon.
DiMattio, who also serves as president of the four-day, chock-full-of-entertainment festival, said his play list isn’t set in stone, but he’s likely to sing such “traditional rat pack favorites” as “New York, New York,” “The Summer Wind” and “My Way.”
Joining him will be his “very good friend, direct from Las Vegas, Andy Dimino” who will perform some of Dean Martin’s hits, perhaps “You’re Nobody ‘Til Somebody Loves You” and “That’s Amore.”
You remember that last one, of course. It starts out, “When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie …”
Speaking of tomato-y specialties, even with four days of La Festa Italiana taking place at Courthouse Square in downtown Scranton, DiMattio said, it’s unlikely a very determined chowhound could sample every type of pizza the vendors will offer. Still, you could give it your best shot.
But there will be pasta, too, and a farmer’s market, and ethnic specialties from other cultures such as kielbasa and gyros.
“There will be a little bit of everything,” DiMattio said. “Including a lot of ice cream.”
Perhaps Festa goers should make it a point to work up an appetite by participating in the James R. Minicozzi Memorial 5K run (or 1-mile walk), set to begin at 10 a.m. Saturday. Registration will take place that morning at 235 N. Washington Ave., and proceeds benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Northeastern Pennsylvania.
Another La Festa Italiana competition, limited to only seven competitors, is the annual cannoli-eating contest, set for 3 p.m. Monday. Would-be cannoli gobblers, who would like to vie to see how many of the sweet desserts they can consume in five minutes, should visit one of La Scala Pastry’s two tents on North Washington Avenue and enter their names into a drawing. The entry deadline is 1:30 p.m. Monday; the drawing will be at 2 p.m., and the contest will take place one hour later.
How many can a person eat in five minutes? A YouTube video posted to La Festa Italiana’s website mentions a previous winner swallowed 13 ½ of the cream-filled pastries.
When you stroll around the festa, DiMattio said, Courthouse Square is likely to give you the feeling you’re in an Italian piazza. “It has your monuments, you’re places to sit, a lot of places to just take a rest and enjoy friends and family.”
Jugglers, magicians and street acts will add to the fun, and featured bands will include The Cameos, billed as “New Jersey’s favorite oldies band,” on the main stage at 7 p.m. tonight. Closing La Festa on at 6:30 p.m. Monday will be The Infernos, whose act ranges from “oldies to Motown, from steamy hot jazz to the sounds of today.”
On Saturday and Sunday afternoon, visitors will be able to take advantage of a free shuttle service that will transport them between La Festa Italiana on Courthouse Square and the Steamtown National Historic Site, where Railfest ‘17 will be taking place. Resembling an old-fashioned trolley, the vehicle will run every half hour.
The annual Mass in Italian is set for 10 a.m. Sunday in St. Peter’s Cathedral, one block from the festival site.
