When the 92nd annual Feast of San Gennaro Grand Procession takes place at 2 p.m. Sept. 15 on Mulberry Street in Little Italy, New York City, a Manalapan resident will lead the way as thousands of people celebrate the patron saint of Naples.
Comedian Vic DiBitetto said in an Aug. 29 interview that he is “still in shock” at being selected as the grand marshal for the San Gennaro procession.
“I went to the San Gennaro festival as a kid,” DiBitetto said as he stood in the produce aisle of one of his favorite area hangouts, Livoti’s Old World Market in Marlboro. “It’s a great New York City tradition and you don’t have to be Italian to enjoy it. They called my manager and asked me (to be the grand marshal). I can’t believe it.
“It will be like Don Fanucci, but with a better outcome,” he said, referring to “The Godfather, Part II,” in which the Feast of San Gennaro plays a prominent role. “If I see Robert DeNiro running on the rooftops I’m jumping off the float.”
In addition to his duties in Little Italy, DiBitetto continues to perform his stand-up routine at venues in an ever-widening area of the United States. On Oct. 27, he will return to the Millstone Performing Arts Center in Millstone Township.
“This is a beautiful state-of-the-art center and it’s great when my commute to the show is shorter than my set,” he said. “When people meet me in Wegmans and Livoti’s, now I tell them to come see me in Millstone.”
The Oct. 27 show will be DiBitetto’s second in Millstone and it is once again being billed in a newspaper advertisement as a chance to see the funnyman “in his backyard.” He gently reminded his fans not to take the advertisement literally and not to show up at his house in Manalapan expecting to see him perform on the driveway.
“I just shot a teaser pilot for the Hearst Company called ‘Vic’s Picks’ where I give my opinion on new toys. Hopefully it will get picked up,” he said. “I’m selling out theaters and clubs into 2020. It’s phenomenal what’s going on. I’m still building my brand,” DiBitetto said.
He offered praise for fellow comedian Sebastian Maniscalco and said he aspires to achieve Maniscalco’s level of success.
DiBitetto continues to place a premium on interacting with his fans. After his show he hosts a meet-and-greet to give audience members a chance to shake hands, say hello and take a picture. A recent meet-and-greet saw one fan present DiBitetto with a cake adorned with his photo.
He said he posts videos online every day that bring a smile to people’s faces, including members of the U.S. military who write to tell him he brings a daily dose of laughter into the difficult situations they face each day in service in the nation.
As to the topics people may hear about when they attend the show in Millstone Township, DiBitetto said he “talks about life. My wife and I are empty nesters now.”
Attendees may hear about his son’s cat, Eddy, who is currently making his home with DiBitetto and his wife, Lucy. They may crack up when DiBitetto recounts his wife’s regular visits to Home Goods and hear his take on the items she returns home with – numerous bird cages, planters and shelves to be hung by the front door.
As for DiBitetto, he calls himself the “donkey” of his home, saying, “I bring home a 4×6 Derek Jeter plaque and ask my wife where I can hang it and she tells me to put it in the shed with the rest of my Yankees stuff.”
For ticket information about the Oct. 27 Millstone Township show, visit www.oct27vic.eventbrite.com or call 732-899-3900. For more information, visit www.vicdibitetto.net