Annual Festa in Honor of the Black Madonna

Monday, September 8, 6:00pm

Annual Festa in Honor of the Black Madonna

It’s coming up to that time of year when we gather on September 8 at the Phoenix Bar, on E. 13th St. in Manhattan.

In 2004, the Calandra Institute’s Joseph Sciorra organized the first annual gathering at the former site of the chapel to the Sicilian Black Madonna del Tindari. The Comitato Pattese alla Vergine SS. del Tindari, a Sicilian immigrant lay voluntary association founded in 1905, sponsored an annual procession and street feast. In 1913, the society opened a storefront chapel and social club at 447 East 13th Street and operated it until 1987. In 1998 the space was converted into the Phoenix, a local gay bar.

The 2004 revival fete was not a religious event but instead a spontaneous, free-flowing cultural affair that recognized the past but also created a future-forward community. A new generation adopted and transformed the Madonna Nera into an icon of an italianità alternativa, expressing creativity and diversity in an ongoing reimagining of community.

No reservations required. Just show up!

Monday, September 8, 2025, 6pm

The Phoenix Bar

447 East 13th Street, off Avenue A

Manhattan

PLEASE SHARE!

For further information, please contact Joseph Sciorra at [email protected].