What’s News in the Mas World?

While some masqueraders in a SOLD OUT mas band are still awaiting official confirmation on their section of choice even though they made their deposit since August 2008, word on the street for another SOLD OUT band is that the President will be leading the birds on the streets come Carnival. His section is touted as being #1 for that popular band. By the way sources say that costumes for this band may begin distribution as early as February 7th! I guess they really want to avoid some of the problems of 2008; lets hope that all the costumes look exactly like the prototypes as well.

Amid all the “kaos” of debut bands for Carnival 2009 ONE band in particular is claiming to have 2000 registered masqueraders, yet not one section is listed on their website as being sold out!!! And if you are an employee of a large local bank you can get a spicy 20% discount off your costume in another newbie band trying to muster up sales. The Bank employees’ offer also includes concierge service, which means pre-registration, individual and group fittings, express pick up, delivery of costumes as well as access to CLOSED sections! Now why don't they offer that to masqueraders who already paid FULL price?

Even though Carnival is 4 weeks away the Friday night mas camp limes are back in earnest with ALL the new bands still wasting money on this venture, I wonder how many people actually register for costumes while indulging in the free eats and free drinks? New Year, time for new tactics people!!!

"Socacize" for those of you in Toronto ......

Just last night I was reading an article called "No Body Left Untoned" on the dedication that goes into the Samba Queens preparation for Rio Carnival, part of which involves a carnival boot camp and dancing for hours in five inch heels and also the extreme of plastic surgery to get the "perfect" body. And this morning I got some information on a Carnival bootcamp of sorts for those masqueraders in Toronto called "Socacize" designed to get you in shape over the next six weeks... now why hasn't anyone thought of a Carnival bootcamp in TRINIDAD?

Anyway, here is the information for those interested and you can also check out the Socacize website HERE:

SOCACIZE™
Is a creative blend of high/low African and Caribbean dance movements performed to calypso, soca, zouk, reggae, dancehall music and on occasion to drums music. The exhilarating mode of the work-out focuses on cardio, weight and strength training targeting all age groups. The ultimate goal of the program is to work-out with emphasis on carefully selected music and movements to synchronize with the mind and body to result in burning calories fast (up to 1000 per 60 minute session) while totally enjoying a session that truly makes you liven up and get fit at the same time.

Socacize™ Boot Camp program is designed for Carnival masqueraders & revellers!

A six-week vigorous and exciting workout with rhythms to Make you dance, exercises to help build stamina, tone muscle, lose inches and boost your confidence.

Featuring a special session with
Dr Jay de Soca Prince

SOCACIZE™ Trinidad Carnival Boot camp Schedule
Tropicana Community Services
670 Progress Avenue, Unit 14 (Progress & Consillium Place Dr.)

Tuesdays 6:30-7:30pm
January 6 | January 13 | January 20
January 27 February 3 February 10

Scarborough Youth Resource Centre (SYRC)
300 Borough Road (Inside Scarborough Town Centre Near Children’s Place)

Saturdays 10:30-11:30am
January 3 | January 10 | January 17
January 24 | January 31 | February 7

Getting Ready..

You know Carnival is soon coming when preparations start taking place around the Savannah; right now vendors booths are being constructed. Later they will be painted, occupied and opened for business:

I need a woman by my side.....

Oh my goodness, check out this advertisement placed on Craiglist:

click to enlarge

"Looking for a fit Trini woman for travel to the Trinidad Carnival 2009. The ideal woman will be aged 35 – 55 and fit. [Lots of parties!!!!!!!!] I am a fit Trini. Reply with a recent picture and I will send one to you."

Talk about carrying sand to the beach !!!!

The Domino Effect

There is a phenomenon that seems to affect all bands in their debut year and it is the issue of distribution problems; no band is in immune. When TRIBE launched in 2005 collection of costumes at the Rosalino Street Mas Camp turned into a nightmare with long lines, long waits and too many people for such a small venue. They solved that problem the following year by moving costume distribution to a larger venue and instituted a very organized system of delivery. Island People encountered problems their first year as well, several sections not arriving on time to be distributed which led to a host of problems for masqueraders eager to collect their costume.

And then there are the horror stories one hears of certain bands that leave you without a costume or a refund for missing parts of the costume that were never distributed; Evolution and D Krewe are two of the offenders for 2008. Pulse 8 had a section disappeared their inaugural year and masqueraders had to be accommodated in another section; this was blamed on materials not arriving into the country on time.

Why all these problems in costume distribution? Some can be attributed to factors beyond the band’s control such as producers/employees falling ill or delays in shipping of costumes and materials from overseas. Other problems occur when bands do not sell many or even ANY sections until a few weeks before Carnival. What happens is that when there is slow registration everyone involved in the band becomes concerned and while some bands might forge ahead with production others take a position to minimize losses that might incur. So, they halt costume production and it becomes a wait and see game.

After the Christmas season is over and potential masqueraders get an inkling that they want to play mas the mas camp tours and costume pursuits begin in earnest, thus for SOME bands there is a sharp increase in masqueraders registering say only four weeks before Carnival. Others get so caught up in the windfall of new masqueraders that they continue to take costume registration right through Carnival week, with registration on Carnival Sunday not unheard of. While this is great for the band that has been struggling with registration numbers, it immediately puts a strain on producers as at the last minute costumes have to be rushed to be completed.

I was told belts, headpieces and other costume accessories are not a big problem when it comes to last minute costume building (not withstanding quality) however bra sizes become a major issue as the bra manufacturers do not take rush and late orders, which explains why so many masqueraders are left without proper fitting bras when these start up bands go through their melee of costume distribution. In order to accommodate irate masqueraders with missing costume pieces, unscrupulous band and section leaders simply take costumes pieces from other masquerader’s boxes not even thinking that the problem is simply transferred to another masquerader.

The last part of the domino effect is that when bands take registration up until the very last they cannot adequately cater to the number of masqueraders that signed up to play with them. When do you give the caterer a listing, for example, if you registered a group of ten on Carnival Sunday night? How do you budget for drinks or even drinks trucks AND security needed? These are all road management and proper planning practices that have to be put in place in advance, so as a band leader you can ensure having adequate drinks trucks, drinks, meals and security. I know several masqueraders were hopping mad when lunch ran out this year and their drinks truck was a mini drinks cart in comparison to what other bands had!

So, how do you the masquerader protect yourself from these problems? I would say choose a band that has a solid reputation and that has been around a few years but problems do occur even with the best of them, however if you do have an issue be sure that the band in question DOES have a reputation of compensating you fairly. Beware of bands that are accepting registration even after they have posted their costume distribution listing; chances are they will not be able to whip up a costume for you magically within a week.

Get a feel of how well a band is doing in terms of registration by visiting their mas camp or checking to see if they have sold out any sections at all. If bands are producing costumes in spite of low registration they should be able to have costumes for you to try on and/or view, especially if it is after the costume distribution date. When buying a costume at the very last minute do not wait to collect on another day, buy a costume that is already made. I would also advise masqueraders that waiting until the very last minute to get a cheap costume is doing a disservice to yourself as well, it is better to register in advance and ask for a discount than to go looking for a dirt cheap costume on Carnival Monday unless you do not mind a costume with a missing bra or headpiece !

It is also in your best interest to ask bands straight up what their registration has been like, if they tell you "we have sections sold out", ask how many people are signed up in the sections, if they tell you we have sections “going fast, close to selling out” again, ask how many people are signed up. Put your ear to the ground, listen to what the public is saying; ask friends and people you know what band they are playing with. Join the band's facebook group, stalk their "roll call" sections or even their disccusion board to see how much interest there is in the band you are contemplating playing with. If their facebook groups are dead, chances are interest in the band is dead as well; if you know no one playing in the band or don't hear the band mentioned when an informal poll on who is playing in what band comes up take that as an omen.

In conclusion, remember the longer bands take to sell out the more panic sets in for the band and section leaders; not a good sign. The longer section stay open without any indication of a favorable response by masqueraders, the more concerned you should be about if the band can and will be able to produce at the very last minute and what kind of product they will be able to offer doing rush jobs. Right now there are bands with ZERO masqueraders registered in any section and I have been reliably informed that some section leaders are even contemplating cutting their losses and getting out now. As a masquerader be careful how you wager with your hard earned money!

D Harvard Boys & D Harvard Posse

I have always held the belief that there are bands in Trinidad that cater to each masquerader's pocket, with many small and medium family bands providing persons interested in an intimate and affordable opportunity to play mas. Most times, however, these bands do not advertise online taking a more informal approach to the mas as opposed to the mega bands that pull out all the stops. So, I was quite happy to discover a website for D Harvard Boys and their Carnival 2009 presentation "Douglarisation".

For those of you unfamiliar with the term "dougla" it is a Trini word used to describe someone who is of both African and East Indian parentage. Hence the tag line for D Harvard Boys ;"Introducing Shaka Singh to Indra Abekiwe. A fusion of Indian and African dress creating a cultural expression."

The band comprises four sections as shown below:

Prices are ALL INCLUSIVE catering to between 200/250 masqueraders and music will be provided by a D.J.,St. James Tripolians (steelband) ,Indian and African drummers.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT

Grantley Auguste (868) 684-5949

Wayne Camps (868) 680-0545

Garvin Allamani (868) 767-9936

Roland Ford (868) 684-5459

The Harvard Club (868) 628-7597

OR visit D Harvard Boys website HERE.

AND, on Carnival MONDAY you can be part of PCS Starlift with The Harvard Posse presentation of "Blaze of Glory" in Starlift's presentation of "Razzle Dazzle" for a whopping $180 TT$ ($30 US$)!

Masqueraders will be provided with a printed t-shirt and a cotton outback hat, and the "semi-inclusive" section will be provide corn soup, sandwiches, rum, beer, bottled water and chasers.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT

Garvin Allamani (868) 767-9936

The Harvard Club (868) 628-7597

Email: gobrave@hotmail.com

Website: harvardposse.50webs.com/HarvardPosse.html