About

We are a stateside mumming group based on the old Alpine tradition of the Perchtenlauf in Europe. Involving fearsome masks of demons, witches and various other wild creatures, the frantic ringing of bells and wild jumping and dancing, the point of a Perchtenlauf procession is to drive out the darkness and the harmful spirits of winter. Winter, especially in the countries where these traditions have originated and persisted, was typically a dangerous time---in the days before central heating, electricity and all the conveniences that most of us enjoy in the present times, a winter in the Alpine countries could be a killer. Freezing from the cold, starving because there is not enough food to get through the season, the long dark days; these are all aspects of wintertime that can still be lethal today in any country. The Perchtenlauf remembers and honors this raw reality and serves as an outlet for the remnants of that still-present fear (no matter how buried under the glittering lights and the gifts of the season), that winter and its spirits will forever retain their icy grip.

The word "Perchtenlauf" comes from "Perchta", the title of a fearsome dualistic winter female spirit known in countries like Austria and Switzerland, and her monsterous retinue, the "Perchten", and "lauf", which means a "run". Perchtenlaufs are often considered the forerunners of today's more widely known "Krampuslauf". Both forms, which are essentially co-mingled, are alive and well today in the countries in which they originated, as well as having jumped over to the United States.

We did our first Perchtenlauf Krampuslauf in Eugene Oregon in 2013. While we are enthusiastic about our laufs, and respectful of Perchtenlauf history, we are not reconstructionists. Our main goal is to keep alive the visceral experience of the dark days and spirits of Winter, best summed up by Linda Raedisch in her book "The Old Magic of Christmas---Yuletide Traditions for the Darkest Days of the Year":

"Perchta's overriding mission has always been to serve as a grisly embodiment of winter, which can first be greeted with merry noise, then driven out again with as much, if not more, rejoicing."

Since Perchta is well known as a creature of the very end and very beginning of the year, our laufs take place in that time frame and in recent years have been held on New Year's Eve.