BACOLOD City has captured the attention of New Yorkers and the Filipino community with participation of the city's Hall of Fame awardee and the 2023 Streetdance and Arena competition grand champ--the Barangay Granada MassKara Festival dancers--on the occasion of the Philippine Independence Day Committee's 33rd anniversary celebration in New York City the 125th Philippine Independence Day celebration held along Madison Avenue, the main thoroughfare in New York City recently.
Bacolod City Mayor Alfredo Abelardo "Albee" Benitez invited the New Yorkers to come to Bacolod City in October this year to experience the city's world renowned festival annual celebration with the participation of the city, barangays and the private sector.
Madison Avenue was turned into a MassKara streetdance zone where people had fun watching the Barangay Granada MassKara festival dancers in their best performance.
It's like bringing Bacolod City to New York that opened up opportunities for the city's tourism promotion.
Benitez was joined by his fellow city officials--Sangguniang Panlungsod Committee Chair on Tourism Jason Villarosa, Councilors Celia Flor, Em Ang and Simple Distrito, former Councilor Caesar Distrito, City Tourism Ma. Teresa Manalili and Punong Barangay of Granada Alfredo Talimodao Jr. and Inday Franz Gasataya.
Businessmen John Alonte, Willy Au and Alberto Dichavez also joined during the celebration in New York.
The experience was superb. The people have so much fun watching the MassKara festival dancers. The ‘Balik Yuhum’ campaign of the city may reap fruits in this year's MassKara festival celebration with their New York edition.
It was Benitez who introduced the MassKara festival dancers in their performance at Madison Avenue. It was the first time that MassKara festival dancers participated in the Philippine Independence Day celebration. It the initiative of the city's chief executive to raise funds for the trip to the U.S. just to let the Filipino-Americans, especially Bacolodnons, get the real feel of the MassKara festival and at the same time promote the city's festival.
The MassKara festival dancers also performed at the Cruise along Hudson River in New York City. The committee paid for the registration fee of all the Bacolod delegation at the Cruise.
They also attended the induction of officers of the Association of Sugarlandia USA, the Association of Bacolod and Negrosanon in New York held at the Philippine Consulate. The inducting officer was Consul General Senen Mangalile.
The MassKara festival dancers also performed at the New York State Capitol in the presence of New York State Senators and Assemblymen and the Filipino community.
Mayor Benitez presented a token of appreciation to Assemblyman Steven Raga, the first Filipino to be elected as State Assemblyman, for inviting Bacolod City and the MassKara festival dancers to perform inside the State Capitol of New York.
Assemblyman Raga also gave a Citation of the State of New York to the Bacolod delegation and the MassKara festival dancers coming from Barangay Granada, Bacolod City.
(Photos from the Facebook pages of Councilor Jason Villarosa, Atty. Caesar Distrito & Mayor Albee Benitez)