Caroline Caricco is a writer and editor living in her hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. She is a professional historian who has worked in Memphis’s cultural sector for over 14 years, and she loves sharing Memphians’ unique stories. For her project, Caroline conducted fieldwork at the Memphis Italian Festival Bocce Tournament. She created an audio story that is available on Spotify.
Episode Description:
Bocce – a traditional Italian game that involves throwing weighted balls at a smaller ball called a pallino – is a simple game to learn and a difficult one to master. It is also a core part of the Memphis Italian Festival hosted by Holy Rosary Catholic Church to celebrate food, family, and Italian-American heritage.
For over three decades, a dedicated group of volunteers keeps coming back to transform a baseball diamond into bocce courts, host two tournaments, and build a community that transcends the one weekend a year when it physically exists. Along the way, they have kept alive a tradition and passed the game to new generations of players.
