About This Festival
Experience the vibrant MassKara Festival in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental. This cultural celebration showcases the rich traditions and heritage of the Philippines.
Historical Background
The MassKara Festival was born out of a crisis in the 1980s. The province’s sugar industry, its main livelihood, collapsed, and this was compounded by the tragic sinking of the MV Don Juan, which claimed many lives from Bacolod. To lift the spirits of the people, the local government and artists organized a festival of smiles.
Cultural Significance
The festival is known for its vibrant masks with smiling faces, which have become a symbol of the Bacolodnons’ resilience and ability to triumph over adversity. The word ‘MassKara’ is a portmanteau of the English word ‘mass’ and the Spanish word ‘kara,’ which means ‘face,’ creating the meaning ‘a mass of faces’. It is a declaration that the people of Bacolod will pull through and survive the tough times.
