The traditional and historic Jesús Nazareno festival in Xàbia, which will be held from April 23 to May 3, will mark a milestone in its centuries-old history in 2025 with the inclusion, for the first time, of women as mayorales.
This year, the group is made up of 10 mayorals, four of whom are young women, thanks to the amendment to the statutes by the Nazareno Brotherhood. Marta Doménech Font, the sisters Martina and María Roselló Ivars, and María Tur Peña become the first women to serve as mayorals of the Nazareno festivities. They will be accompanied by Juan Vicente Escortell Vidal, Juan Catalá Llidó, Martín Escortell Moreno, Bartolomé Català Chorro, Rafael Cardona Salvador, and Miguel Ern Buigues.
This progress has been highlighted with emotion by the Councilor for Festivals, Mavi Pérez, who expressed her "great joy" with this step toward a more inclusive celebration. "It's a historic moment that demonstrates that the festivities evolve alongside society," Pérez stated.
Changes and new features in the program
The president of the Nazareno Brotherhood, Vicente Tur, has presented some new features for the 2025 festival program. Among them is the reorganization of the bullfighting sessions, which this year, as in 2024, will be held exclusively in the afternoons for four days, eliminating the traditional evening sessions and a day of bullfighting.
Tur also announced that this year there will be new surprises during the May 3rd Mass in honor of Jesus of Nazareth, as well as during the Ascent of the Nazarene procession, although details will remain secret until that day.
The rest of the program maintains the most emblematic acts such as the flower offering, the installation of the traditional May crosses, Children's Day and the solemn procession of the raising of the image of Jesus of Nazareth to the hermitage of Calvario, which will close the festivities.
Festivities with a charitable vocation
The charity aspect of the festivities will also play a significant role. As usual, collaboration will continue with other festival committees, such as the Junta de Moros i Cristians (Moors and Christians) with the disco mobile organized by the Filà Capitana (Capitana) and the Loreto Festival Committee theater.
In addition, on May 4th, following the official end of the celebrations, a charity concert will be held to benefit Aspanion, the association for families of children with cancer. The concert, featuring the Banda Jove del Centre Artístic Musical de Xàbia, will have a nominal admission fee of 5 euros.
The mayoress of Xàbia, Rosa Cardona, wanted to emphasize the importance of opening up to women as a fundamental step toward making the festivities "even bigger." "The Nazarene festivities are a demonstration of the devotion of the people and the participation of all its members," the mayor noted.
