site.btaEurope's Biggest Masquerade Festival Opens in Pernik

The 31st Surva International Festival of Masquerade Games opened in Pernik on Friday with a parade in the central part of the town and a show featuring 250 mummers, dancers, singers, acrobats and musicians.

The opening was attended by Bulgaria's Vice President Iliana Iotova, who has provided her auspices for the festival, Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Zafirov, Federation of European Carnival Cities President Lars Algell, Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) Director General Kiril Valchev, MPs and foreign ambassadors.

The opening act was a group from the village of Stefanovo, who won the festival's Golden Mask Award in 2024. They walked into Pernik's central square with burning torches.

Vice President Iotova said in a greetings address: "Surva is magic, mystery, tradition, future, beauty, fire, hope, battle. Most importantly, all of you who have come to this festival have brought your energy and all the good that you want to do. The festival rests on an old tradition showcasing the Bulgarian spirit, a desire for unity, for generations and families to come together, and to teach children how to tell right from wrong. We live in a tough world, and we need, more than ever before, to feel that we belong to a community, to share, to help one another and to stand together in the battle against evil."

Pernik Mayor Stanislav Vladimirov said the town lives for this festival. He said the thousands of mummers "have put their souls into the making of their huge, awe-inspiring masks and costumes, but it is warm inside their souls, because we need to chase evil away and bring good in."

Lars Algell officially declared Pernik a global centre of masquerade traditions.

The Surva International Festival of Masquerade Games in Pernik is organized with the support of the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Tourism. It is Europe's biggest event for popular games and rites with masks. It brings to life old rituals, elements of the folklore tradition of the Bulgarians.