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from 53 ROTECNA WORLD
LIVING NATIVITY SCENE
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Living nativity scenes are one of the essential activities during the Christmas holidays. Since the beginning of December, living nativity scene troupes have been launching their performances. In this way, many Catalan municipalities revive biblical scenes in one of the most deeply rooted popular cultural traditions.
The oldest living nativity scene in Catalonia
Castell d’Aró, in Girona, can boast of having the oldest living nativity scene in Catalonia. They started in 1959 and have since become one of the most popular. This nativity scene has 400 characters in the two kilometre-long nativity scene, which has more than 50 distinct biblical scenes. In 2011 they received the ‘Creu de Sant Jordi’, one of the most important distinctions in the Catalan cultural field.
A manger in an abandoned village
There is a place where the decoration of the living manger takes on more might than anywhere else. We are talking about the ‘Masia Castelló’, a small town located in Vandellòs and l’Hospitalet de l’Infant (Tarragona). The living manger that is recreated in this town served to salvage a medieval town that was abandoned to its fate year after year. Since 1997, the ‘Masia de Castelló Association’ organizes these recreations that occupy streets and houses and enlarge them with their magic every year.
Image of a living nativity scene.
A manger scene with its own voice
In Gunyoles d’Avinyonet (Barcelona), the living manger sets itself apart from the typical stage marked by tradition and the characters speak in its depictions. This rebirth, with 45 editions behind it, traces a journey around a natural cave in the mountain. The scenes begin in the village with a guide who accompanies the spectators up the hill along a well-lit route. Up to 300 neighbours work in the making of this nativity scene, one of the most popular in its area.
A nativity scene in an old castle
In the small village of Fals, everyone participates in the Christmas performance. For over 40 years, the residents of this rural area of great beauty have recreated the scenes of the birth of Baby Jesus in a privileged setting, with the ‘Torres de Fals’ as the main attraction. In 1992, the Catalan government recognised the work done in this nativity scene with the Award for the Best Popular Artistic Initiative.
La Pobla de Montornès, true to the classics
La Pobla de Montornès, in Tarragona, celebrates its living nativity scene in a much more classic way, in which a shepherd guides the attendees along the tour of the 15 biblical scenes in an exemplification that lasts just under an hour. The living nativity scene of this town has more than 40 years of history and adopts the environment of the hermitage of Montornés as a stage, located on a small hill near the municipality.
The living nativity scene of Sant Fost de Campsentelles boasts many special effects. The creation made by the residents of this municipality leaves its audience mesmerised, with scenes of angels flying over cliffs with lightning and thunder. As every year, the whole town rallies for this depiction, which even has a traditional ‘caganer’.
The manger of Ardèvol
The manger of Ardèvol, in Lleida, lists two hundred actors in its representations, twice as many inhabitants as the municipality. The representation is divided into two parts, a first of biblical inspiration with the gospels and the life of Jesus, and a second in which the story takes a leap in time and recreates life in the eighteenth century borough and how the neighbours were preparing to live the Christmas holidays.
Ancient trades in Sant Guim de la Plana
We end this review of the best living nativity scenes with that of Sant Guim de la Plana (Lleida). This nativity scene starts at the door of the castle of the town, from the twelfth century, and runs throughout all the streets and squares of this small medieval town. The differentiating fact of this living manger is that it focuses on supporting a good part of the traditional field trades that have disappeared nowadays. The ‘nativity scene’ offers thirty-some scenes that end with the birth of Jesus.
