“Auskehren“ in Imst

The traditional 'Schemenlaufen' only takes place every four years – the next time being in 2016. The 'Auskehren', on the other hand, happens every year on Shrove Tuesday, and it is always a highlight in the tumultuous Tyrolean carnival festivities. The 'Auskehren' is, so to speak, the small Fasnacht and it begins at dusk. The main characters of the 'Schemenlaufen', the 'Scheller' and 'Roller', are missing, the main actors here are the witches. They are led by the witch mother, who also bears the overall responsibility for the parade.

The witches practice 'Zurfen', which means they hold their brooms towards the spectators and thus challenge them to a competition. If a spectator engages, he grabs the broom at the twigs and begins the test of strength with the witch. However, the witch has the advantage, as she holds the broom by its curved handle, which also has a leather loop attached to it. Normally, the witch wins the competition, a defeat would also be an unspeakable disgrace for her. She would then be mocked and ridiculed all around and locked up in a stable all night. However, the latter no longer occurs nowadays, mainly because there are no stables left in the urban area of Imst.

The witches are accompanied by the 'Altfrank', who are called 'Zinter' ('igniters') during the 'Auskehren' because of their lanterns, the 'Sackner', and the bear gang along with their drivers. The 'Purjatzl' act as the 'vanguard', who make a tremendous noise with their wooden rattles. The 'Labaren' are also an essential part of the 'Auskehren'. However, while there is only one group of 'Labaren' during the 'Schemenlaufen', there are four during the 'Auskehren': the 'Zylinderlabara', the 'Gögsle' and the 'Junglabara', as well as the 'Labara Vier'. A 'Labara' is a group of men who are eager to sing and mock, who roam through the city's taverns and tell stories about various residents of Imst. The head of each 'Labara' is the declaimer, who tells these mocking tales, supported by the others with singing.

Misunderstandings, embarrassing or ridiculous incidents, follies, human weaknesses, stinginess, greed, and vanity – all of this is material for the mocking tales of the 'Labara', which are always met with much applause, especially when the 'victims' of these stories are present.