BdC Lagniappe 44/52 Adding Spark to Your Presentation

At least for the past 12 years lots of mas camps in Trinidad have been adding surprises to their presentations with the use of pyrotechnic displays embedded in the king and queen costumes.  Most bands still enter large king and queen costumes in the preliminary, semi-final and final round for the King and Queen of the Bands titles. The finals form part of the Dimanche Gras show on Carnival Sunday in Trinidad & Tobago. I believe this photo is of Roderick Snell, a known competitor in the King of the Bands competition. I took it in 2000 with my Nikon N65 SLR from the side of the stage nearest to the North Stand (which is no more).

 

 

Wednesday is lagniappe day where I include some educational element or a how-to, so here’s a bit more:

Trinidad Carnival is an indigenous festival in that it is based on the African heritage of those who were enslaved and brought to the Caribbean, North and South America. However, it took on many characteristics of the territories in which it grew. In Trinidad that meant using the dominant language of the land, and holding events at a time that was convenient and permissible to persons with limited freedoms.

 

Although Trinidad was colonized more often by the Spanish and British, the larger groups populating the island in the of Trinidad* in the late 18th and 19th century were  often French speaking enslavers and Africans who spoke a combination of French and West African languages. Hence the use of many French and Spanish practices and names within the Carnival. For more information on this linguistic and population growth start here with the Cedula of Population of 1783.

 

Dimanche Gras is French for grand Sunday. The term Mardi Gras, often used in New Orleans, is rarely used in Trinidad & Tobago (I’m sure there’s a reason and I’ll get back to you with that). In the meantime

 

Enjoy

L

*The histories of Trinidad and Tobago were slightly different before they were joined by the British as a two-island state.