Exploring the 'City of Smiles'

THE smiling faces on the masks of Bacolod's Masskara Festival performers have a deeper story. These smiles were originally meant to conceal the hardship the city faced in the early 1980s. Bacolod, the capital of Negros Occidental, relied heavily on sugar cane as its primary agricultural crop. When sugar prices hit an all-time low, many hacienderos were pushed into bankruptcy or deep debt. Thousands of workers lost their jobs and went hungry during this period, known as the "Negros Famine." Additionally, on April 22, 1980, the MV Don Juan collided with a tanker, resulting in numerous fatalities, including members of prominent Bacolod families.

In response to this pervasive gloom, city officials created a "Festival of Smiles" to lift the spirits of residents. Named "Masskara" — from "mass," meaning a multitude, and "kara," meaning faces in Spanish — the festival featured performers wearing smiling masks to hide the sorrow. The masks symbolized Bacolod's resilience, a declaration that no matter the adversity, Bacolod would endure, survive and emerge stronger.