This article and television news report was produced in 2020, and it was written in response to a common criticism of the modern Carnival, that designers and masqueraders love of nudity was killing creativity. I attempted to explore that argument without prejudice. Published in the Trinidad Guardian (print and online) 22 February 2020 Source: http://www.guardian.co.tt/article/validating-naked-mas-6.2.1059944.a2db36df0a…
Après Carnival-la and we are here in T&T reminiscing on what we’ve just experienced. This was a different season for me, a returning to centre because I was never a big masquerader. All I did this year on Monday and Tuesday was J’Ouvert with 3Canal which was special. My first was their last as the…
There’s a conversation that takes place in Jamaica about Dancehall versus Soca very regularly. And that conversation gets very heated around Jamaica Carnival. It’s a hard conversation for me to listen to, because having lived in Jamaica – I studied at UWI, Mona – I hear the xenophobia in the comments. Too often when Jamaican…
My new favourite thing for Carnival isn’t new at all. It’s a traditional martial art, or fighting style, that was born in Trinidad to African and Indian parents and seems to be having a revival. It’s called Kalinda or Stickfighting. I first went to Stickfighting last year, and had a blast. My favourite thing are…
I had a time at Bishop’s Fete. Kes the Band were amazing. As was the food and atmosphere. I mean, I didn’t even mind it when I got wet by water from Iwer. Here are some of my pictures from the night. On to my next. Save Save
Robert Young’s band Vulgar Fraction’s presentation for 2017 is called the Caribbean Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea. The models were people Robert selected from the crowd. He dressed them and they began twirling. The band has a loose structure, but I was surprised by how I was warming to it. The costumes,…
Patrice Roberts wants you to know that she’s a big woman now. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9ihFiC_OMw?rel=0] And Voice has released the video for his song Far From Finished. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojPxM54slHk?rel=0] All to usher in the Carnival Jumbie that Christmas and New Year’s Celebrations was keeping at bay.
The Tourism Development Company Limited has a new destination website: www.gotrinidadandtobago.com. It’s meant to be attractive to vacation planners and has information about events, food and shopping. Most interestingly, you can book trips from the website. This follows the launch of a German-language site which is targeted to travellers from Germany, Austria and Switzerland: www.gotrinidadtobago.de …
Yesterday, I got to see Sanskara, a local film noir that’s going to be screened this year at the TT Film Festival. Let me tell you, I enjoyed it. To be fair acting isn’t our forte, and Lord does it ever show in this piece, but there’s so much thought behind this film that shines…
I’m actually finding this very intriguing: The Centre for Culture and the Arts at Leeds Beckett University in partnership with Leeds West Indian Carnival will be hosting an international conference on Caribbean Carnival Cultures on 19 – 21 … Source: Second Call for Papers – Caribbean Carnival Conference, May 2017