KAISO! Goodbye Carnival

mas is dying and dead
all my arguments about there being people who still play “real” mas
and people who have not gone the commercial route seem to be shut down
even though this year’s Carnival spirit was mute, it was Carnival and now i mourn
the abandon of that season that passes too quickly.
next year, i will explore my theory about there being less “bikini and bead” costumes outside of port-of-spain for all the naysayers.

enjoy a few stolen shots below.

A family of Fancy Indians. The way mas should be.

Fancy Sailor.

This band comes out every year. Always small. Always costumes they have made themselves. No music truck just drums and steel-pan. Always an African theme.

Another band member. The way mas should be and is in some cases.

The non-masqueraders revelling.

3 responses to “KAISO! Goodbye Carnival”

Anonymous

February 29, 2012

I respectfully beg to disagree with the statement that it's mas the way it should be. Well, not entirely disagree, because I don't care for absolutes. There is room for some commercialization in mas. The thing evolves. There is room for people to design, others to make, others to purchase and to portray a theme. They can even do so with meaning, passion and authenticity. The problem is more one of an unfair advantage of the “elite” and monied, the “foreigners” w sterling and $ and the rich crowding out the important creative voices. The problem is with ppl loosing the point that carnival was always an African festival that represents ancestral heritage and a means to speak truth to power, buck the status quo. A voice for Africans and the disadvantaged. The problem is the government and ignorant ppl complict in pushing that false head to the detriment of a rich ethnic and artistic heritage.

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Zee Speaks

March 2, 2012

Thank you for reading and commenting! You make some excellent points. Mas in Trinidad does have a history of the commercial because we cannot all fill the roles of creators/designers/constructors but that commercialism has now morphed into the elitism that you mention. The Fancy Indian family merely represents that history of authenticity, passion and portrayal is getting lost.

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Anonymous

March 3, 2012

Yes, I was just saying that mas can be commercialized and it can be organic, homemade, created individually and independently. Maybe they can co-exist. I live in hope of more balance, even in mas. There is room for the people who want to make money, and the people who have a serious artistic/political/conscious message. 🙂 People like you.
Bless my sista! Nuff respect.

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Zahra Gordon