Art historians agree that Michelangelo’s most beloved sculpture was La Pieta, evidenced by the fact that it’s the only piece to bear his signature and a miniscule inscription of an upward-pointing thumb. Witness the beauty of the Renaissance with today’s Groupon: for $5, you get two one-day admissions to St. Anthony’s Italian Festival in Wilmington (a $10 value for ages 14–61). The offer is valid only on Monday, June 13 from 5:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., and there will be no refunds due to inclement weather conditions.

One of the largest gatherings of its kind in the country, St. Anthony’s Italian Festival celebrates its eponymous country's rich cultural heritage through a Renaissance-inspired jamboree of food, wine, music, and cultural events. In La Piazetta, vocalists Vincenzo Fiore and Nicola Nigro stimulate auditory organs, and Tarantella dancers showcase traditional routines. Restaurants specializing in heterogeneous regional varieties of Italian cuisine dot the fairgrounds’ landscape in edible tents strung together with deli meat. Diners at the Antonian Surfside can purchase steamed soft-shell crabs and clams, and Café Nona Starda visitors select land-roaming comestibles such as grilled sausage with fresh peppers as well as broccoli rabe. Customers sip crushed grapes courtesy of La Piazza and DaVinci’s.

A taste of local commerce in the old country can be experienced at Il Mercato, where shoppers will discover such artisan articles as hand-painted ornaments, imported dinnerware, and Perugina chocolates. A recreated Renaissance garden, replete with topiary and a fountain, allows guests to visit the flora of Florence without having to plant a fountain in their backyards. Boisterous offspring—and those who begat them—will discover an outlet for their enthusiasm in the Kiddie Land portion of the midway with rides, games, and other family entertainment.