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Beautiful bored people of Munich, did you know: here in Munich, there’s a special traditional performance that’s so rare, it happens less frequently than the Olympics…?
Every 7 years in fact… and guys, 2019 is one of the lucky years we get to witness it.
So, who’s ready for the comeback of the Schäfflertanz!?
The Schäffler-what?
While you may have never heard of the Schäfflertanz by name, odds are you’ve actually witnessed it before – yup, this traditional dance is actually featured in the Glockenspiel show at the Munich Neues Rathaus. Crazy stuff huh?
Long story, short, the Schäfflertanz is a traditional guild dance of the Schäffler, craftsmen who created wooden vessels like barrels. Legend has it, the dance dates back to 1517 when the plague had wiped out a huge portion of Munich’s population and they wanted a way to boost morale among survivors… so they decided to cheer people up through doing this dance. As in “hey Ludwig, sorry everyone you love got wiped out by plague, but would you like to watch me jig?”
Yes, they really believed in the healing power of dance apparently…
Anyways, the dance is now performed every 7 years by guys in a variety of professions. Once upon a time, it was a Schäfflers-only shindig, but the number of Schäfflers available began dwindling too much to make a full squad. We don’t want to spoil things too much, but the performance starts and ends with a traditional march, and a lot of fun formations in between.
If you’re not yet sold, the Schäfflers perform in some pretty badass outfits too: green caps, red jackets, black pants and wonderful white knee socks.
This is what the performance looks like:
Where to Watch the Schäfflertanz This Month
So, this year, lucky us, the Schäffler will be dancing all around Munich throughout the month leading up to Shrove Tuesday, which is on March 5, 2019. Here’s where and when you can catch this spectacle for yourself.
Sunday, February 10
10am: Dachau, Pellheim, at the Maypole
12:30pm: Harthof, Heimperthstraße 1
1:30pm: Schwabing, Schellingstraße 66
3pm: Old Town, Ratskeller Munich, Marienplatz 8, in the Prunkhof
3:30pm: Old Town, Marienplatz, Wildmoser
5:30pm: Aschheim, Münchner Straße 7
Here’s a full list embedded from their official website. You can click on each timeslot for more specific details about location:
