• KEITH BRANDON CARI-AN
Months before the most colorful and joyous festival begins in the City of Smiles, the local government and the Bacolod Yuhum Foundation (BYF), unveiled the activities for the 45th edition of the MassKara Festival, during the “Unmask: Sponsors and Press Presentation” Aug. 17.
Held at L’Fisher Hotel, “Unmask” gathered sponsors and media members for the official launching of this year’s logo and theme song, and to honor key figures in over two decades of the festival history.
This year’s festivities center on “Sapphire”, the gemstone that symbolizes 45 bold years of the festival.
“Masskara has come a long way,” said Jericho Redil, BYF director for Administration and Finance, in a media briefing following the sponsors and press presentation. “On our part, we are trying our best to make sure we uplift Bacolod. With the months leading to MassKara, we hope to give the Bacolodnons a good reason to celebrate.”
Redil added that while the celebration will be the biggest yet, BYF did not make any extreme changes so that “the recall is there.” He added that the foundation running the festival “listens to feedback.”
Different from previous schedules, this year’s festival will kick off on Oct. 11 and will run until the fourth week of that month, all the way to Oct. 27.
“Third year’s a charm,” said Rodney Ascalon, a member of the BYF Board of Directors. “We’ve learned a lot. We are trying our best that this year’s events are more polished and organized.”
The BYF was tapped to lead the MassKara Festival celebration since 2022.
The BYF is working on finalizing the schedule of events in four major festival sites – Bacolod Public Plaza, the Government Center, Megaworld’s The Upper East, and at Lacson Tourism Strip – said Katherine Matiling, BYF president and director for Concerts and Events.
Matiling added that the festivities along Lacson Street, this year, will be compressed into three days – Oct. 25-27. The activities at The Upper East will be for five days, or from Oct. 23 to 27.
International and local acts are expected to grace the major festival sites, Matiling said. Festival sponsors Bingo Plus and Puregold are also set to bring celebrities to the City of Smiles.
Matiling said the BYF has been working closely with an inter-agency task force to ensure the safety of festival-goers. She said one of the major changes they will enforce is reduced stage sizes and the number of performance stages along Lacson Street.
For the arena dance competition, the provincial government of Negros Occidental said that it will still assess the Paglaum Sports Complex if it can accommodate the viewers, guests, and performers.
BYF is considering the city plaza as one viable option, but is keeping its choices open for the venue of one of the highlights of MassKara.
As of writing, only five barangays have submitted their respective letter of intent to join the street and arena dance competition, said Kuster Cadagat, BYF corporate secretary and director for Cultural and Arts.
The BYF said Mayor Albee Benitez is very strict this year. The barangays need to liquidate their expenses from last year’s festival, before they can join and receive subsidy for the 2024 street-dance.
Similar to 2023, the organizer is eyeing 10 entries for the street and arena dance competition. The barangays that were grand champions in past festivities are expected to compete this year, said Cadagat, adding the prizes for both the street dance and electric MassKara are comparable to last year’s.
Meanwhile, 15 barangays have submitted their intent to join the Electric MassKara and Masskara Electrika Diva, but only 10 will be chosen as final entries.
The Bacolod food scene will also take center stage in October as the National Food Showdown will bring in 17 chefs, four of which are homegrown, said Ana Tison, Board of Director and Food Committee head.
Part of the culinary offering of BYF is the “food crawl passport”, which will be given to new arrivals at the airport, seaport, and bus terminals.
The food crawl passport will serve as the guide for foodies to explore Bacolod through taste. It will feature the staples – chicken inasal, cansi, pastries, and pasalubong, as well as other cuisine that are becoming more prominent in Bacolod City.
During the Unmask presentation, the late Donna Porter was posthumously recognized for her award-winning choreography of the Lopues’ group in the late 80s. She was represented by her daughters Darlene, Darcel, and Dun Lee. ||
