MassKara Festival

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A MassKara Festival street dance competition participant
A MassKara Festival street dance competition participant

The MassKara Festival is a week-long festival held each year in Bacolod City, the capital of Negros Occidental province in the Philippines every third weekend of October nearest October 19, the city's Charter Anniversary.

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[edit] History

The festival first began in 1980 during a period of crisis. The province relied on sugar cane as its primary agricultural crop, and the price of sugar was at an all-time low. It was also a time of tragedy; in April of that year, the inter-island vessel Don Juan carrying many Negrenses, including those belonging to prominent families in Bacolod City, sank. There was a great loss of life.

In the midst of these tragic events, the city's artists, local government and civic groups decided to hold a festival of smiles, because the city at that time was also known as the City of Smiles. They reasoned that a festival was also a good opportunity to pull the residents out of the pervasive gloomy atmosphere. The initial festival was therefore, a declaration by the people of the city that no matter how tough and bad the times were, Bacolod City is going to pull through, survive, and in the end, triumph.

[edit] Etymology

The word "MassKara" is a portmanteau, coined by the late artist Ely Santiago from the word "mass" meaning "many or a multitude of the people", and the Spanish word "cara" meaning "face". A prominent feature of the festival is the mask worn by participants; these are always adorned with smiling faces. MassKara thus means a multitude of smiling faces.

[edit] Features

Charisse Gangoso of Colegio San Agustin-Bacolod (center), MassKara Queen 2005, and her court; Richelle Catalan of Riverside College (left), 2nd runner-up and Jay Ann Empleo of the University of St. La Salle, 1st runner-up.
Charisse Gangoso of Colegio San Agustin-Bacolod (center), MassKara Queen 2005, and her court; Richelle Catalan of Riverside College (left), 2nd runner-up and Jay Ann Empleo of the University of St. La Salle, 1st runner-up.

The festival features a street dance competition where people from all walks of life troop to the streets to see colorfully-masked dancers gyrate to the infectious rhythm of the Latin musical beat in a stunning display of mastery, gaiety, coordination and stamina. Major activities include the MassKara Queen beauty pageant, carnivals, drum and bugle corps competitions, food festivals, sports events, musical concerts, agriculture-trade fairs, garden shows, and other special events organized ad-hoc every year.

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