Six months ago, if you had told us that we would be adorning magnificent chicken hats like a crown atop our heads, joining a parade of thousands of people wearing extravagant outfits and terrifying masks in a small town called Roztoký just outside of Prague in a traditional parade called Masopust, we would’ve laughed in your face. Yet, there we were, in a foreign country wearing incredibly unique and detailed hand-made costumes like nothing that we had ever seen before. We were unsure going into it–we had no idea what to expect. But we were in for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
What is Masopust?
Masopust, the Czech version of Mardi Gras, is an annual celebration that occurs in villages all over the Czech Republic. It takes place in the spring, and represents the final day of celebration before the commencement of Lent in the Catholic religion. ‘Maso,’ in Czech, translates to meat, and ‘půst’ translates to fasting, literally meaning the giving up of meat. Masopust has the same meaning as carnival, which similarly translates to the giving up of meat in Italian. The Masopust celebration is chaotic and fantastical, and involves all attendees to dress up in extravagant costumes in order to mask their “real” identity.
Our Czech Masopust
Our Masopust experience started in the morning on the train from Prague to Roztoký. We saw families boarding our train dressed in all different types of carnival outfits. From kids the age of 3 to middle age and older people, everyone was dressed in handmade outfits. We saw people dressed as rats, birds, and other animals.
When we arrived at the festival grounds a mere 15 minutes later, our group was handed costume after costume. Some were larger than others, towering a terrifying 8 feet over the rest of us. Many had multiple pieces and parts.
Then came the chickens.
First came a paper mache chicken hat, complete with a beak and a shawl to mask the face. Then came another fabric hat. And then another, and another. And then–a giant, full-body, chicken costume.
Head-to-toe chicken.
Soon, more than half of our NYU Prague group was dressed in assortments of chicken costumes, ready to take on the parade. We looked a little ridiculous, but we realized that we were actually fitting in with the rest of the parade goers.
Preparing for the Parade
For the next two hours, we had free time to explore the festival before the parade began. There were stalls and stalls of various Czech foods–each stall had a different specialty. The highlights were the klobasa sausage, the sauerkraut, and the Czech pastries. A particular favorite were these cinnamon-covered fried dough balls similar to Brazilian or Portuguese malasadas. Additionally, they had several different kinds of beer, cider, and mulled wine that were delicious and filling.
And our costumes were a hit! Many people came up to us and took photos. The amount of chicken costumes we had in our little cohort was amusing to everyone, and we embraced it with pride, taking in every moment. There were equally ridiculously amazing costumes from everyone else at the parade, including terrifying grotesque masks, giant cranes whose wings actually moved, and people on stilts, waltzing through the crowd without any worries.
The Coronation of the Queen
The highlight of the festival–the coronation–was not to be missed. At approximately 2:00, the queen, chosen by her predecessor for her strength and resilience, was to be crowned before the large Masopust audience. The coronation was an enormous celebration, with live traditional Czech folklore musicians celebrating the new queen, and the audience cheering.
The presenter of the ceremony was speaking in Czech, so unfortunately us chickens were not able to understand what was being said. He constantly held up a sign that read “Slava,” which translates to glory, which the audience would all yell together. Once the queen was crowned by the previous queen, she was mounted onto her horse (her horse being two people dressed in one horse costume), that carried her for the duration of the parade.
The Parade Begins!
With the queen leading the way on her horse, the entire festival of people began to sing, dance, and parade up the hill, through the village of Roztoký. The Queen led the festival, and her 100+-meter veil trailed behind her, held up by dozens of members of the parade. A few of us even took turns holding up the veil while we walked. The procession stopped every now and then, with performances taking place in front of us. The excitement in the air was palpable, with everyone laughing, dancing, and singing. People watched from their balconies as we were walking through a residential street and threw candies at us. The parade walk lasted around three hours, and concluded with a celebration in a field at the top of the hill with the queen.
The Ritual Killing of the Horse
Once we returned to the initial location of the celebration, a new ceremony began. People gathered in a circle, and we watched women begin to dance throughout the middle to a purely rhythmic beat, while carrying brooms. This celebration was of the killing of the horse that had carried the queen throughout the parade, representing the end of winter. In anticipation of the horse’s death, everyone was given a paper bag that we had to blow up, and then pop once the horse was killed. After this happened, though, the horse magically came back to life, and the celebration commenced again! Everyone was dancing together, and it was a wonderful way to end the celebration. Unfortunately, this was the time to say goodbye to the chicken costumes that we grew so connected to during our experience.
Chickens No More
Once we shed our costumes and returned to our normal identities, the night ended with a concert in the main tent! A roaring jazz band played both Czech and American hits, along with two fantastic singers. The entire room danced and sang to classics like “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” and “Hit the Road Jack.” We danced with each other, random Czech people, and ended up even starting a conga line. And although we were exhausted from being chickens all day (trust us, it wasn’t easy), the concert was the perfect way to end the night.
Masopust 2025 was a unique opportunity that was unlike anything else we had ever experienced, and it was completely worth it. First putting on those chicken costumes and getting situated in this completely new environment was, funnily enough, very inspiring to us.
The big takeaway from our incredible journey is, try new things, step out of your comfort zone, and put on the dang chicken costume.
by Sydney Greenwald and Tess Lowke