{"id":497549,"date":"2026-01-06T23:07:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T23:07:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/497549\/"},"modified":"2026-01-06T23:07:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T23:07:13","slug":"mummers-parade-struts-in-for-the-second-saturday-firstival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/497549\/","title":{"rendered":"Mummers parade struts in for the second Saturday Firstival"},"content":{"rendered":"

New Year\u2019s Day, and its Mummers Parade festivities, have come and gone. The confetti, beads and empty bottles on Broad Street have been (mostly) picked up and the hangovers and ringing in the ears for anyone who was around \u201cTwo Street\u201d have healed.<\/p>\n

But this year the Mummers get another weekend in the city\u2019s spotlight, thanks to the Philadelphia Historic District\u2019s \u201c52 Weeks of Firsts,\u201d which are showcasing a variety of marvels, inventions and events that first happened here in Philly.<\/p>\n

The Historic District has set up a Saturday \u201cFirstival\u201d ceremony to kick off each week. The free public events, running from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., will introduce and celebrate the topic through entertainment and activities, a sculpture painted by a local artist<\/a>, music, giveaways and storytelling by Historic Philly\u2019s Once Upon a Nation historical experts<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The inaugural \u201cfirstival\u201d last weekend celebrated French aeronaut Jean Pierre Blanchard completing the first successful balloon flight in America<\/a>, on Jan. 9, 1793.<\/p>\n

Next up is the Mummers Parade, which is the nation\u2019s first folk parade, dating back to 1901 \u2014 though that\u2019s just a part of the tradition of mummery in Philadelphia.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat dates back to as early as 1640,\u201d said Mark Montanaro, the current curator of the Mummers Museum<\/a>. \u201cThe parade itself is celebrating its 125th anniversary, but mummery dates back over 350 years in Philadelphia.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"One of the intricate costumes on display at the Mummers Museum in South Philadelphia. (Nick Kariuki\/Billy Penn)<\/p>\n

Mummery traces its roots to the city\u2019s 19th-century immigrant communities<\/a>, including Swedish, Irish, German and English arrivals.<\/p>\n

There have been controversies surrounding cultural insensitivity, cultural appropriation and racist attire and actions in costumes and performances in the past, but many clubs have worked to make mummery more inclusive and diverse in recent years<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Mummer\u2019s \u201cfirstival\u201d will be held at the museum, which is celebrating its 50th year. Located in South Philly, it was created as part of Philly\u2019s celebrations of the nation\u2019s bicentennial, \u201cto preserve, display, and educate the history of mummery in Philadelphia,\u201d Montanaro said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the Mummers Museum, every day is New Year\u2019s. So we try to celebrate New Year\u2019s yearround here,\u201d said museum coordinator Cheyenne McClain Cohen, who is also the vice president of Golden Sunrise N.Y.E.<\/a>, the last Fancy club left in its division.<\/p>\n

\"MummersMummers museum coordinator Cheyenne McClain-Cohen and curator Mark Montanaro. (Nick Kariuki\/Billy Penn)<\/p>\n

The museum is chock-full of costumes, instruments, images and records of past parades. It is also a space where Mummers clubs \u2014 and other performing groups spread across the city \u2014 can meet, practice and be highlighted.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a home to the Mummers,\u201d said McClain Cohen. \u201cThis museum is meant to be some place that all Mummers feel represented, and where the public is able to see that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"A display of instruments and records at the Mummers Museum in South Philadelphia. (Nick Kariuki\/Billy Penn)<\/p>\n

It may seem counterintuitive to not celebrate the Mummers Parade in the same week as the event, but there was a good reason for that. Montanaro said that Saturday, Jan. 3, was the alternate date for the parade<\/a> if weather caused any delays.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Despite an early-morning snow squall and high winds, the Mummers still strutted<\/a> \u2014 though the string band competition was suspended for safety reasons.<\/p>\n

Most Philly residents have misconceptions about the tradition of mummery \u2014 some of those have been brought on by the unflattering moments of its past.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The biggest one, though, is that it\u2019s a one-day commitment every year.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo a lot of people, we\u2019re like Santa Claus,\u201d said Shawn Blubaugh, captain of the Greater Kensington String Band<\/a>. \u201cYou get close [to New Year\u2019s Day] and you go in the attic, you open the box, you pull out, \u2018Oh, the Mummers are here.\u2019 We do the whole Mummer thing. And then after it\u2019s over, \u2018OK, we\u2019ll put them back in the box, we\u2019ll put them in the attic, we\u2019ll see him this time next year.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n

Blubaugh said that the string band takes just a week or two off after parade day, and then it\u2019s right back into meeting, costume designing, practicing and fundraising for next year\u2019s parade.<\/p>\n

He says that being showcased in the city\u2019s 250th celebrations helps to shed a more positive light on the Mummers, and lets them celebrate and showcase the work that clubs do for the parade and their local communities throughout the year.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt not only helps spread \u2026 awareness, but just sheds a positive light to show everybody what it is that we do beyond just New Year\u2019s Day,\u201d he said \u201cAnd also just the recognition, and showing people who we are and that we\u2019re more than just ornaments that go up around the holidays, that you can pack back in the box and come out the next year.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

For those interested in getting some steps in before and after the firstival, the Freewalkers walking group is having a meetup<\/a> starting at 9:15 a.m. in LOVE Park, heading to the Mummers Museum, and then back to LOVE Park.<\/p>\n

In the coming weeks<\/p>\n

Here are the first months of other firsts being highlighted this year, along with the Saturday firstival dates and locations.<\/p>\n