Bacchanal every night at carnival mas camps
It’s carnival season and before the big day on September nineteenth, pre-judging is taking place. We have reported on Black Pearl and Sunshine Masqueraders. News Five’s Duane Moody hit the streets in the north and south sides of the City for day two of the junior mas camp. This is how that went…
Duane Moody, Reporting
The Pickstock Carnival Band, Mahogany Masqueraders and Jump Street Posse were all in top form when we visited with them Thursday night. The Pickstock Carnival Band is the rookie of the bunch, they are getting full support from the City Council. The band feels that its creativity, their theme, ‘yah dah fi we Belize,’ will seal the title for them. Organizer, Gareth Gill says they are ready for the road march.
Gareth Gill, Organizer, Pickstock Carnival Band
“Belize has a lot, this is our twenty-eighth battle of St., George’s Caye. And for this year we say you know what mek we go out and we gonna do ‘this dah fi we Belize’. For the road march, this is only half of ninety-one. Lots of my students they are in college and some of them have to be out, not coming to dance today. But trust me we will got ninety-one and they are going to see exotic costumes, there gonna see beautiful costumes—its red, white and blue.”
Duane Moody
“Do you guys feel that you are going to win this year?”
Gareth Gill
“In Pickstock, we do not feel, we know that we gonna take it this year.”
The second stop was the home of the Mahogany Masqueraders. In this band, headed by Nadia Avila, the ingenuity of challenged youngsters makes it unique. Avila says that even though their theme is also ‘yah dah fi we Belize,’ they are focusing on conservation and protection.
Nadia Avila, Organizer, Mahogany Masqueraders
“The first section is protection, take care a weh we have—we culture, all ah we dah one. Creole, the Garifuna, the Mestizo, the Maya—five section. Without people we can’t conserve—that’s the first thing. Second section dah recycle—conservation—I use weh ah have and ah mek costume, plastic bottle, bottle stopper fi buttons, patchwork material, you understand me. Shaka; plastic bottle with this. No money no deh so I try fi think about way about how I could do it otherwise. I have five guys that can’t speak and you know. This is my main designer Andrew–he designs every one of my costumes. He design out and I think and I say I love it or I no love it, but most of the time I enjoy it and I love it. For the nineteenth we are going out there with colors, with a positive team and with high expectations for the general public to see what we have to offer.”
Jump Street Posse is known for its theme and costumes. They have been competing for the past twenty-seven years but organizer, Marina Welcome, says that for the past two years, the Ministry of Education is hampering the progress of her band.
Marina Welcome, Organizer, Jump Street Posse
“The kids love carnival—they look forward for to it for the summer, but we are having a little problem with school. The school are penalizing the kids to dance carnival. Last year we had problem with A.C.C., they penalized the kids that danced carnival. Today, Excelsior had a meeting that the kids cannot dance carnival. During the summer what else is for the kids to do. At least their parents know where they are for a couple of hours, that they are safe. I try help the kids get into school, if they have death we help, if they have sickness we help—it’s not only about carnival.”
Public Relations Officer of the Belize Carnival Association, Melissa Forman, says that participation in the carnival means a lot for the youths.
Melissa Forman, Public relations Officer, Belize Carnival Association
“This is something that the President and the association is trying to work with the school through the ministry of education to sort out because it is the junior band. There certain rules and regulations that has to be followed to be within that range. They are not going to wear anything revealing or any provocative dancing do we are hoping that the schools will work along with us.”
That aside, Welcome is hopeful and is fine tuning concept, three the hard way.
Marina Welcome
“We’re dealing with the reality—the hurricane it’s a disaster that we can’t stop but we have to take proper precaution when it is here. And then we have fire—we have the drug addict that leave the stove on, leave their pipe on drop asleep, boom fire—people innocent people house catch fire. So we have to do something about that. And then we have the everyday killing /child molestation that is getting high this year.”
The event was exciting and fun and I got beads… yeah! The sixth and final junior band is Ladyville Freedom Masqueraders. Duane Moody, reporting for News Five.
Stay tuned for September seventeenth and eighteenth as the mas camp for senior bands will take off. But prior to that, on September twelfth, thirty-five queens and kings from both junior and senior bands will take to the stage in this year’s Carnival King and Queen Competition.
