Bacolod’s 2023 Masskarade Ball
This was my first time attending a Masskara festival. This is actually surprising, since my mother is from Bacolod! I was curious to see what the festival was like, and it was fun!
The MassKara Festival is an annual festival with highlights held every fourth Sunday of October in Bacolod, the “City of Smiles.” The word “Masskara” is actually a portmanteau coined by painter and caricaturist Ely Santiago from mass (a multitude of people) and the Spanish word cara, or face. This formed MassKara (a multitude of faces), also a pun on maskara, Filipino for “mask,” a prominent feature of the festival.
The first MassKara Festival started in 1980, a year of tragedy. Negros relied on sugarcane as its primary agricultural crop and the price of sugar was at an all-time low due to the introduction of sugar substitutes like high-fructose corn syrup. The same year, the inter-island vessel MV Don Juan carrying many Negrenses collided with a tanker, Tacloban City, and sank off Mindoro, which resulted in many Bacolodnon lives lost.
During these events, the local government then headed by Mayor Jose Montalvo appropriated a fund and enjoined the city’s artistic community as well as business groups to hold a “festival of smiles,” to live up to the being the “City of Smiles.” The festival, like Brazil’s Carnival, evolved into one of the major annual tourism attractions of the Philippines over the next four decades. The MassKara Festival is roughly three weeks long and is one of the world’s longest festivals.
The Masskarade Ball was one of the most anticipated activities during this festival, which was chaired this year by Jojie Dingcong. The Sugarland Hotel Ballroom had many who flew in from Manila to join Bacolodnons in celebrating the 44th year of the Masskara festival. The charity ball raised funds for five students representing five sectors of Bacolod, namely PWD or Persons with Disabilities, Youth, Women, OFW or Overseas Filipino Workers, and the Transportation sector.
Bacolod Mayor Albee Benitez was in attendance with wife Nikki. The Miss Bacolod Masskara 2023 candidates modeled for a fashion show that narrated the history of the Philippines. Masks were given to each guest as well.
The Bacolodnons were very welcoming, generous, and kind. The food served throughout the festival was amazing. I had almost forgotten how good the food is in Negros, as I haven’t been back in 10 years!
Aside from the Masskarade Ball, there was the colorful Electric Masskara Evening Parade and the Grand Closing Parade that were also highlights of this trip.
This was my first Masskara Festival and won’t be my last. For those who haven’t gone to one, consider going next year and enjoy everything the city has to offer… Bacolod is indeed the City of Smiles!
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