The Macao International Parade sets forth in a riot of colour and excitement from the Ruins of St Paul’s
Around 1,800 performance artists took to streets during the 2025 Macao International Parade, delivering joyful burts of colour, rhythym and creativity. All fully embraced this year’s theme of ‘Love, Peace and Cultural Integration’.
Now in its 11th iteration, the parade’s 83 representative groups included Italy’s Wonderwalks, an ethereal act centred around soap bubbles; Sufi-inspired tanoura dancing from Egypt’s Emad Selim; a taste of traditional Polynesian cultures via Heiva i Tahiti; and the mesmerising movements of Argendance, from Argentina.
Other European talents hailed from Portugal, Germany, Bosnia and Herzegovina, France, and Spain. Asian participants included South Korean performers who staged an enchanting ‘elephant hat’ dance and UniCircle Flow, from Japan, performing their unicycle show – often described as like figure skating on land. Artistic and comedic groups from the Chinese mainland were also out in force.
The parade’s many home-grown acts were sources of awe and inspiration as well. Casa de Portugal’s giant bandstand was one local highlight, as were Macao’s energetic Brazilian capoeira dancers and the Macao Philharmonic Orchestra. Dozens of community groups contributed to the parade, displaying the Special Administrative Region (SAR)’s own cultural diversity and deep artistic sensibilities.
Under clear blue skies, the parade wound its way down from the Ruins of St Paul’s, through St Dominic’s Square and Senado Square, to journey along Avenida Panorâmica do Lago Nam Van. Crowds of residents and visitors lined the route, snapping photos and soaking in a carnival-like atmosphere that left no one in any doubt of the SAR’s status as a 2025 Culture City of East Asia. The extravaganza wrapped up in style near Macau Tower at Sai Van Lake Square, with a traditional dragon dance as its grand finale.