El Cipotegato

Festive tradition in the town of Tarazona , in Zaragoza (Aragon ) featuring the main character, known as the Cipotegato (a jester), and the tomatoes with which he is pelted as he runs through the streets.

The Cipotegato is the star of these festivities in Tarazona, and every 27 August, starting at noon, he runs through the city under a bombardment of tomatoes. Dressed in a harlequin’s disguise, the Cipotegato makes his way through crowded streets as people toss tomatoes at each other, leaving a festive tomato fight in his wake. The route is known only to the Cipotegato, although it always starts and ends in the Plaza de España square. Once he has passed the finishing post, he is lifted up to the monument in his honour to cries of “Cipote, cipote!” where he ties a kerchief around the statue, thus marking the start of the main festivities of Tarazona. The programme for these festivities continues until 1 September and includes popular open-air dancing, bullfighting events, street entertainment, a foam spray, traditional folk dancing… The most important day is 28 August, when a mass is said in honour of San Atilano, the town’s patron saint.