NATIONAL MASK & WARWAGIRA FESTIVAL

RABAUL FRANGIPANI FESTIVAL

The famous annual National Mask and Warwagira Festival, hosted in the East New Britain Province, returns after three years.

By Elizabeth Makis

The National Mask and Warwagira Festival is back after three years of being inactive due to the COVID 19 pandemic. The Mask Festival is set to commence, July 10th to 12th 2023 at the Athletics Field next to Kalabond Oval in Kokopo, East New Britain Province.

This Festival promotes the unique culture of the East New Britain people in storytelling modes which will be performed through singing, dancing and initiation ceremonies and these will be performed by traditional artists representing the distinct tribal groups in the province:

• Tolai

• Baining Pomio

Although, the priority will be given to the ENB local performers, the festival will also feature other performers from the New Guinea Islands region, like the mask dancers from the provinces of New Ireland and West New Britain.

The festival has been dormant for three years due to the pandemic, and that is why the festival organizing committee are pleased and excited to announce that East New Britain’s most popular cultural event is making an exciting come back this year.

In an interview with the Deputy President for the National Mask and Warwagira Festival Mr. Tiolam Wawaga, he said that although they have not hosted the festival in the last three years, they are now looking forward to bringing this festival back on ground.

“Unfortunately, in the last three (3) years (2019-2022) we did not host it due to the Covid-19 pandemic.”, said Mr. Wawaga in an interview with Journeys Magazine.

The National Mask and Warwagira Festival is a nationally recognized event, officially acknowledged by the National Cultural Commission and Tourism Promotion Authority, and is one of the many cultural festivals that is happening around the country.

“It’s one of the ideal festivals in East

New Britain and most of the masks that are shown in the festival are from the ENB as well as from other provinces in the New Guinea Islands region, but most are masks from the Tolai society”, explained a local tour guide and operator Mr. Dominic Tulo of PNG Tour Guides.

With the expected peak season for tourists in PNG starting from June all the way to November, festivals such as the National Mask and Warwagira is predicted to have a good number of tourists visiting, given the time frame it has been absent from Papua New Guinea’s festival events calendar for the last three (3) years.

More so, this festival not only showcases the traditional mask dancers of the New Guinea Islands (NGI) region, but also highlights the rich cultural legacy of the region being passed on to its future generations. With the rapid changes in technology and modernization, the youth of today often lose sight of their traditions. By holding such cultural events, the young energetic people of East New Britain can remember their traditional knowledge by proudly participating and connecting their culture with the world.

The National Mask and Warwagira Festival will be a day and night event starting off with the traditional ‘Kinavai’- the arrival of the Tolai 'Tubuans' and 'Duk-Duks' at dawn, followed by exchanging of traditional Tolai ‘tabu’ shell money that will mark the opening of the festival.

As explained by Mr. Wawaga, the exchange of ‘tabu’ is a token of appreciation in welcoming them. In response to the welcome ceremony, the ‘Tubuans’ and ‘Duk-Duks’ will start to dance by way of complementing the welcome ritual.

The return of the National Mask & Warwagira Festival is a much needed boost for tourism in PNG. The festival provides an arena for some of our nation's unique cultures to be displayed. Whether your a local Papua New Guinean or expatriate, the festival is a spectacle for all to see. So, plan your trip now to East New Britain for the return of the amazing National Mask and Warwagira Festival.