HISTORY

OF MASSKARA FESTIVAL

The Bacolod MassKara Festival is a yearly festival held in Bacolod City, Philippines, culminating on the 3rd Sunday of October. It is one of the most popular festivals in the Philippines, and is known for its colorful masks and festive atmosphere. The MassKara Festival can trace its roots back to the 1980s and was born out of a crisis. It was during the time when the province's main livelihood, sugar, was priced at an all-time low because of alternatives introduced in the market, which resulted in one of the worst famines in the country's history that affected an estimated one million people. It was also the time when a tragic ferry accident happened, which carried mostly people from the province including those from prominent families of Bacolod.

The festival was born out of a crisis. In 1980, the sugar industry, which was the main source of income for the province of Negros Occidental, was in decline. This led to widespread poverty and unemployment. The second one was the tragic accident of the MV Don Juan travelling from Manila to Bacolod. This caused the death of 176 passengers and crew.

In an effort to lift the spirits of the people, the administration of former Mayor Jose “Digoy” Montalvo along with the help of the Art Association of Bacolod (AAB) came up with the idea of creating a festival that would celebrate the city’s resilience and its people’s famous smiles. They designed a mask with three smiling faces, and called it the “MassKara”. It literally means many faces. It was coined by Ely Santiago, a painter, cartoonist, and cultural artist.

The Bacolod MassKara Festival is a yearly festival held in Bacolod City, Philippines, culminating on the 3rd Sunday of October. It is one of the most popular festivals in the Philippines, and is known for its colorful masks and festive atmosphere. The MassKara Festival can trace its roots back to the 1980s and was born out of a crisis. It was during the time when the province's main livelihood, sugar, was priced at an all-time low because of alternatives introduced in the market, which resulted in one of the worst famines in the country's history that affected an estimated one million people. It was also the time when a tragic ferry accident happened, which carried mostly people from the province including those from prominent families of Bacolod. The first Masskara Festival was held in 1980 and was an immediate success, with locals and visitors coming together to celebrate with music, dance, and street parties. The festival has since grown into a month-long celebration that begins in October and culminates in a grand street dance competition held on the fourth Sunday of the month. The festival has become a symbol of Bacolod’s culture and identity, attracting thousands of visitors from all over the world each year.

The name MassKara Festival is taken from the words ‘mass’ which means crowd, and ‘kara’ which means for face, so MassKara means crowded for face or masks for many faces. MassKara was conceived by the Art Association of Bacolod (AAB), the intention of which was to creatively organize a street dance parade thus getting away from a “meaningless” civic-military parade. It was also meant to hide the tears and sorrows brought about by the sugar crisis and the MV Don Juan sea mishap. People celebrate the MassKara Festival by wearing smiling-faced masks, colorful costumes, and unique accessories, while parading and dancing on the streets of Bacolod. This festival contains a message about being happy despite being in the toughest state of life.

Every October, the streets of Bacolod City, Negros Occidental become a sight of merriment. There are many dancers dancing their hearts away and all wearing mask and people from all walks of life troop to the streets to see colorfully-masked dancers dance their heart away to the infectious rhythm of the Latin musical beat in a stunning display of mastery, gaiety, coordination and stamina. This is what they called the “MassKara Festival”.