The Bacolod Masskara Festival - A Celebration of Life!

The annual Masskara Festival held in Bacolod City every October is a celebration which has earned for Bacolod the title “City of Smiles”. The Festival was conceived in 1980 by a group of city officials, Arts Association of Bacolod members and some concerned citizens with full support from the city government and the Department of Tourism Field Office to enliven the usual City Charter Anniversary celebration which, at the time consisted of the routine flag ceremony, employees program and the afternoon civic military parade.


The word “Masskara” was coined by the late AAB president Ely Santiago from the two works “mass” which means “many or a multitude of the people” and the Spanish “kara” meaning “face”. The masks worn by the participants during the parade are always smiling. Masskara thus means a multitude of smiling faces.


Since its inception, the Masskara Festival is held every third weekend of October nearest the Charter Anniversary. It features a Masskara Street Dance competition where people from all walks of life troop to the streets to see colorful masked dancers gyrate to the infectious rhythm of the Latin musical beat in a stunning display of mastery, gaiety, coordination and stamina.

Major activities are the beauty pageant, carnivals, drums and bugle corps competitions, food festivals, sports events, musical concert, agri-trade fair, garden show, to name few.

For a brief history on the Masskara Festival, check this out:
http://bacolodphilippines.blogspot.com/2009/01/masskara-history-and-information.html