It’s a Sudbury Saturday afternoon and you know what that means…time for another hilarious round of Porketta Bingo at the Trevi.
Mark Mannisto, president of Sudbury Performance Group (SPG), usually hosts the event on behalf of SPG. “Porketta Bingo is a one-of-a-kind afternoon of fun, community, laughter, and teasing,” he explained. “It’s kind of like regular Bingo, except you have three playing cards instead of a Bingo card. If I call out all three of your cards, you win!”
The rules are simple, but audience participation is definitely a big part of this very popular pastime. “I like to call Sudbury the Mecca of Porketta!” laughed Mannisto. “We like to rib the newcomers, we call them ‘Porketta virgins’. Also, if you mess up and accidentally call Porketta on a bad hand, watch out…the whole gang at the Trevi are going to shower you with chants of “You #&#!ed up!”
What is porchetta? A delicious, seasoned, slow-roasted pork roast, very local, and famous in Sudbury including at the Trevi.
Porketta Bingo originated in Sudbury in the 1940’s or 50’s from the Italian immigrants who came to work in the mines.
“They weren’t readily accepted by the Canadian miners, so they gathered weekly in their own group, in the local bootleggers, to drink and play “tombola” for porchetta roasted in the baker’s bread oven,” explained Mannisto. “I don’t know if their games were as lively as ours are, but I kind of think they might have been!”
“Porketta Bingo players can win a pound of porchetta, or a serving of Trevi’s famous wings,” said Mannisto. “As well as having a ball and supporting Sudbury Performance Group and other community groups at the same time.”
Sudbury Performance Group’s Porketta Bingo has been running for over ten years now, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Trevi every Saturday. “We like to partner with other local community groups and then we split the proceeds with them,” explained Mannisto. “It helps everyone out that way. We usually aim to raise between $1500 to $2000 for each group.”
Mannisto added, “If you are looking for a fun, absolutely unique, laughter-filled Saturday afternoon in Sudbury, check out Sudbury Performance Group’s Porketta Bingo at the Trevi! Tickets are $30 for three strips of cards for the entire afternoon, and can be purchased right at the door.”
If you are a community group looking for some support and would like to partner up, contact Mark at [email protected].