MassKara is Bronze Medalist in World Mask Dance

The MassKara Festival dancers of Bacolod City bagged the bronze medal out of 13 participating countries in the recently concluded World Mask Dance Competition in Andong City, South Korea.

The contest was one of the highlights of the Andong Mask Dance Festival, which ran from September 28 to October 7, 2018.

Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia lauded the “great news” as an attraction and image of the famous MassKara Festival.

“We personally saw them in action in Andong and we knew that our talented and dedicated dancers will capture the hearts and admiration of so many. We are truly proud of our MassKara Festival,” Mayor Leonardia said.

The City Mayor stressed that the international victory was fitting as it came exactly in the opening of the 39th MassKara Festival in Bacolod City.

Among the competing countries include Russia, South Africa, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Israel, China, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, and Philippines.

Apart from the World Mask Dance, a Domestic Mask Dance Competition was also held for mask-based festivals in South Korea.

According to the City Public Information Office, Leonardia and Councilor Em Ang, chair of the Sangguniang Panlungsod Committee on Tourism, accompanied the MassKara delegates to South Korea as the official representatives from Bacolod that were invited by the International Mask Arts and Culture Organization (IMACO).

Meanwhile, IMACO president and Andong City Mayor Kweon Young-Sae conveyed, “Andong Mask Dance Festival is a cultural icon for the Andong region, celebrating the traditions of Korean and international mask dancing.”

IMACO is a group of mask-based international festivals, with 131 individual and group organizations from 56 countries.

It is located in Andong City, South Korea, which is dubbed as the sister city of Bacolod.

The sisterhood agreement was forged in September 2008 during Leonardia’s administration. (LTP/LML-PIA6 Negros Occidental)