The Pre-Lenten Season or Forelent, also known as Shrovetide, is the Christian period of preparation before the liturgical season of Lent.
The Czech Republic celebrates Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras as a folk tradition called Masopust (meat fast, i.e. the beginning of the fast). While carnival is synonymous with masopust, the latter term is currently used to refer to the carnival festival. A Shrovetide processional plays an important role in securing a sense of cohesion within the local community, despite being banned in turn by the Catholic Church in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and by the socialist government in the twentieth century.
In some regions such as Chodsko, Doudlebsko, Hlinecko, etc. a procession of masks with music is part of the celebration. The same processions, a special focus is placed on the dances of young men who are called "bobkovnici" or "Turci". Aside from that, ceremonial dances are also performed during the party. These are often referred to as "na len" or "zabská". In the past, Masopust or Carnival was held on the night between Twelfth Night and Ash Wednesday, while the Lenten season began on Ash Wednesday before Easter. A fancy dress party is held on the Lenten Tuesday before Easter as the final event of Masopust.
For example, in the town of Hlinsko near the Hlinecko region of Eastern Bohemia, Shrovetide processions are held in seven nearby villages. It is a customary popular carnival for Christians during Shrovetide to think about what sacrifices they will make for Lent. Another characteristic of Shrovetide is the last opportunity for merrymaking associated with Carnival and Fastelavn before starting the somber Lenten season.
As a brass band plays, village men and boys, disguised in masks that depict traditional characters (red masks for boys, black for married men), go from door to door throughout the village. In each house, four of the men perform a ritual dance, with the permission of the householder, to ensure a good harvest and prosperity for their family. These masked men receive treats and collect a fee in exchange. At the end of the last house, a "Killing of the Mare" ritual is performed, which condemns a mare for its alleged sins and reads a humorous and topical testament. After the 'execution,' the mare's spirit is revived by alcohol, signaling the start of a dance where the masks frolic among the onlookers.
This tradition still prevails in the Chezh Republic, before the celebrations the youths and children assist in the preparations, while parents make copies of traditional masks for their sons.
References
(https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/shrovetide-door-to-door-processions-and-masks-in-the-villages-of-the-hlinecko-area-00397) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrovetide) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mardi_Gras#Czech_Republic) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavic_carnival#Masopust_in_the_Czech_Republic)