Rites of Holy week

The two principal processions that are developed in Sorrento on Holy Friday are those of the Our Lady of Sorrows or of the "Visit in the sepulchres", organized by the Venerable Arciconfraternita of Saint Monica and that of the Dead Christ, organized by the Venerable Arciconfraternita of the Death.

The first procession takes place at 3:30 AM on Good Friday and involves hundreds of participants dressed in hooded white gowns. The Madonna is carried aloft in the procession, and accompanied by several religious articles as she searches the town looking for her son. The procession commences in the Corso Italia, turns through Piazza Tasso, and then visits each of the town's churches - stopping in each one for a short ceremony. The Madonna is accompanied by aides carrying incense, and a large male choir and band. The procession concludes at 5:30 AM.

The second procession occurs at 8 PM on Good Friday and reflects the Madonna's mourning as she finds her son dead. Hundreds of participants, dressed this time in hooded black gowns, march down the Corso Italia and then wind through the smaller laneways of Sorrento. This procession is much larger and better attended generally.