Parade of Spirits 2020 (Philadelphia) Notice

PARADE OF SPIRITS 2020: INFO

Since its inception in 2012 as Krampuslauf Philadelphia, the Parade of Spirits has become a beloved grassroots, community-led event. 

I’m sure you’ve all heard this phrase before: “Due to covid.” Yes, due to covid, we are going to have to scale the parade down significantly.

- The “official” parade will consist of just the three organizers (Janet, Linda, and I). If others choose to don a costume and to follow the official parade, they themselves will be responsible for maintaining proper social distancing.

- We (or at least I) plan to use videoconferencing and to record our march.

- The first half of the parade will be in total silence (the Silent March in English or der schweiyend Marsch in Pennsylvania Dutch). This is to honor the many people whose lives were lost or drastically impacted by the pandemic. It is a moment to look back on 2020 and to recognize what we have lost and to try to find ways to take lessons learned from the lack of preparation and compliance and to use them to make, as a society, better decisions on the future.

- About halfway into the parade route, the Germanic psychopomp, Gedreier Eckhart (played by me) will begin the noise making, and everyone can begin to chant and to cheer as usual. This is symbolic of hope and the ongoing cycles of the ages. Ironically, the depiction is of dead beings affirming life. During the latter half, anyone around and on videoconference or Facebook Live, should set their intentions on making 2021  better year. What that will look like will vary from person to person. In my case, I had let a series of bad news (not the least of which was getting covid and later being designated as a longhauler) define my year for me, so my life was centered around those things. In 2021, I am still going to have to deal with those things, but they will not define me. I also plan to ritually hex the virus, but that’s a different post.

- This is the sucky part. We won’t have the bonfire or any entertainment in the park. We will also have to miss out on the vibrancy that the Philadelphia Women’s Slavic Chorus has imbued the march with over the last few years.

- The official parade still will start and end at Liberty Lands Park. The step-off time for the parade is 16:40/4:40 PM on Saturday, December 12, 2020.

Thank you for your time and support for this event.