The Pintados-Kasadyaan Festival is the biggest festival of Tacloban City, Leyte, held every June in honor of the Señor Santo Niño. “Pintados” was the name Spanish colonizers gave to the tattooed natives of the Visayas, and the festival celebrates that heritage with dancers whose bodies are painted with intricate designs, recreating the look of the ancient warriors. The Pintados celebration, traditionally held on June 29, was merged with the Kasadyaan Festival of Festivals, where municipalities of Leyte compete in street dancing. Together they fill Tacloban’s streets with color, drums, and devotion every fiesta season. These photos are from the 2010 Pintados-Kasadyaan Festival.
See also: Pintados-Kasadyaan Festival 2016
