Mask Festival- FESTIMA 2012

Two weekends ago I went to the Mask Festival, or FESTIMA (Festival International des Masques et des Arts de Dédougou).  FESTIMA is held every two years in Dèdougou and is probably the biggest of its kind.  It is unique in that there are many different types of masks who come from all over to participate.  The masks at FESTIMA were mostly from Burkina, but some came from Benin, Togo, Cote d’Ivoire, and Mali.  Most of the spectators were local Burkinabè (which was GREAT to see), but there were some international tourists (mostly French), and of course us, the PCVs. 

I travelled to and from Dédougou (240 km roundtrip) in a rented car with Kait, an RPCV back for work and vacation, and Emily, a third year, like me.  I do have to say that traveling by rented car is the way to go in Burkina.  We did not have to deal with local transport at all and got there in record time- 4 hours versus the 6+ on local transport.  However, it was expensive and I have to say a big thank you to Kait for covering a lot of the costs (she has an American job that makes real money).  Otherwise, I would not have been able to go.

We were only at FESTIMA for two days, but it was worth it!  We spent the two days watching different mask groups perform.  Each mask group, each from a different village, consisted of griots (musicians who played a flute-like instrument and/or drums) and several masks.  Most of the masks represented animals or spirits.  Several mask groups told stories: the hunter and the prey, the magic haystack, etc.  It is believed that once a performer (always a man, never a woman) puts on his mask, he becomes the mask and is not responsible for his actions.  The masks at FESTIMA were incredible and I would recommend the experience to anyone who has the desire to come to Burkina. 

 

Emily, myself, and Kait at the festival.

Please go to http://sworthy10.wordpress.com/2012/03/12/mask-festival-festima-2012/ , the blog of a friend for some amazing pictures.  Unfortunately I did not have my camera with me at the festival, but Scott's pictures more than make up!