At the village of Tó there isn’t just a procession through its street asking for offerings, there’s a whole a staging of a fight of good versus evil with four characters, performed by the local teenager boys. A devil like figure tries to reach a maiden that holds a decorated staff (another symbol of fertility), but a boys comes in between and the devil is doomed to always fail to reach her. The fourth character isn’t really relevant to the performance. Each year, each teenager should perform their character on a specific order, and the Farandulo, the black-painted demon, the one that does all the tricks and pranks is the last of those characters they’re allowed to play.  

This is one of the festivities of the Mirandese Plataeu that can be seen on my latest blog post.      Tó, Trás-Os-Montes, Portugal  🇵🇹, January 2020 #portugal #trasosmontes #wintersolstice #festadosantomeninohttps://photos.joaoalmeidaphotography.com/image/I0000jDa7boPlb1c