Local town hosts baby doll dance at annual festival

LOWELLVILLE, Ohio (WKBN) – The 129th Lowellville Mount Carmel Society Festival is happening this week and there’s a deep tradition behind the four-day event.

Food, games, bocce — all reasons people come out to the festival.

But at night, everyone gathers around to see one thing — the baby doll dance.

The baby doll is a giant costume made of cloth and paper, and the arms are wrapped with fireworks.

The dancer gets inside and marches around with a circle of people watching.

This year at the festival, Nick Speziale will be the man inside the baby doll. It’s a tradition his family has carried on for decades.

“They just passed it down to me, so we’re trying to keep it in the family as long as possible,” Speziale said.

Speziale took over baby doll duties two years ago. Before him, his Uncle Frank did the baby doll dance for over 40 years.

“I want there to be a lot of people to see it because when I used to watch, I loved the big crowd. I loved trying to get in the middle. Sometimes they let me light the baby doll, so I prefer a big crowd,” Speziale said.

It’s a tradition the whole community gets involved in. One Lowellville resident built a 12-foot-tall baby doll in her front yard for the occasion.

Local 3D printer Zachary Simon is also joining the fun.

“The baby doll is like, when you think of the Lowellville fest, that is the face of the Lowellville fest,” he said.

Simon printed miniature baby dolls and hid them around the festival area. He posts videos to his Instagram account for followers to track down the figurines.

“They could find all the videos that I post of the ‘print and drops’ and from there, they can go on their scavenger hunt and try and find them,” Simon said.

The tradition of the baby doll comes from southern Italy. The display represents the burning away of evil for the new year, which started on the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

If you want to see the baby doll dance, Friday night is your last chance. The dance starts around 11 p.m.

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