Meet Reynold Cooper, veteran mas man. Mr. Cooper, 76, is well known in Trinidad for his involvement in keeping the tradition of sailor mas alive. He continues to make his own costumes and teaches the tradition of sailor mas with the fancy sailor dancing steps to children in the national program that teaches traditional mas to children in schools. More to come.
I always wonder about the origins of fancy sailor mas, its supposed to be influenced by the American presence on the island in WW2 but there are similar costumes around the Americas that suggest an older origin….I wonder..
Here’s a bit more on sailor mas from Bloggin de Carnaval 2011 http://studiolafoncette.com/2011/02/23/sailor-mas-bdc-1636/ and 2012 http://studiolafoncette.com/2012/12/05/bdc-4852-the-fancy-sailor/.
Thanks .
Excellent old time mas nostalgia more of it please in the UK
Glad you like it. These photos were shot during Carnival 2012. However, the masquerader, Mr. Cooper has been playing sailor mas for more years than I’ve been on this earth.
age makes no difference