Municipalities today

The XXXII International Festival of Masquerade Games “Surva” will officially begin on 16 January (Friday) at 6:00 PM with a grand and spectacular performance featuring over 250 performers, including dancers, singers, musicians, acrobats, survakari (masquerade participants), and many surprises for the audience.

Festival visitors in Pernik will enjoy the performance “Legend of the First Survakar”—a stage adaptation of the work “Legend of the First Kuker” by Dimitar Petrov and Studio Zmey. The production will transport the audience into the magical world of tradition, mythology, and the ritual power at the heart of Surva. Participants include the ensembles Graovska Mladost, Graovo, and Chinari, students from the National School of Dance Arts, musicians, acrobats from New Circus, fire performers from Palyachi, survakari from the villages of Yardzhilovtsi and Gabrov Dol, and many others.

The festival will feature a rich program combining traditional masquerade parades, academic forums, exhibitions, creative workshops, concerts, and contemporary artistic formats.

Surva provides a platform for both authentic ritual traditions and modern interpretations of masquerade games, highlighting international participation, youth initiatives, and a diverse cultural program taking place both outdoors and in the city’s cultural institutions.

The full daily program from 16 to 25 January is available on the festival’s Facebook page.