The annual carnival king and queen competition took place on Friday night at the Marion Jones sporting complex. This year the competition was reduced to only junior bands but as Keith Swift found out that didn't cool the fever nor tension among rival bands.
Keith Swift Reporting
There was an octupus, a beast, a pepper, and fittingly in that mix not only one but two dragons.
PHILLIP RAMSEY BELIZEAN BOMBERS
“My costume is an octopus. I portrayed an octopus because you always hear about the bigger predators you never hear about the small ones like the octopus. So this year we planned to do the octopus and we did it and here we are.”
Keith Swift
“it’s big but is it heavy?”
“No it’s not, it’s not heavy it’s light it is made of sponge and some wires just carving out the shape of it”
Q. “I saw you out there jumping up. How hard was it jumping with this on your back?”
“It wasn’t that hard. I just had the feeling of dancing tonight so I just danced.”
JUSTIN GILL JUMP STREET POSSE
‘I am representing Jump Street Posse and my costume is all about paradise. I am Bubbles the Sea Dragon. I am the King that protects the underworld. That’s why they call it Bubbles the Sea Dragon.”
BRODAINE BANKS HATTIEVILLE HOTSTEPPER
“My king costume was about the chili peppers. It’s bright colors, it’s intensively hot taste and all what it has. Representing us Hattieville people as being hot people. We are hot”
Q: “Most king costumes are big, your’s isn’t as big.”
“This costume promotes me to move as much as I want. Unlike the others that have wheels they have to only walk. I can also run and dance and what’s not. This promotes me to move more.”
But those were just the competitors for King, and for the Queens big was in.
CHRISTAL ARCHER JUMP STREET POSSE
“My costume is ambrosia. While at the beach you have a taste of Ambrosia. If you don’t know what Is Ambrosia.”
Ambrosia is a fruit of Cocktail.”
Q “it’s an amazing costume you have. It’s so tall. How did you dance with it out there?
“Well I just have a hard practice with my friends and more encouragement from my friends and my mother”
ROCHELLE REYNOLDS MAHOGANY MASQUERADORS
“The name of my costume is Milian, the mystic Indian princess. I am representing the first people who came and civilized our land. Thank you.”
Q: “What kind of work went into the costume.
“Tireless effort because it was very hard to prepare.”
Q: “ How hard was it to dance in it?”
“Not very hard because I have been in Carnival for three years and I have a lot of practice.”
Q: “You are 12, So you have been in Carnival since you were 9?”
“Yes Sir.”
KENIESHA TUN JUMP STREET POSSE
" I am Ashanti the Sea Goddess.”
Q: “What was It like being out there?”
“First I was a bit scared but then I got used to the stage so it was very easy to do.”
ANNA BEVANS BELIZEAN BOMBERS
“We’re doing undersea creatures like the dolphin, the octopus and different things under the sea.”
Q: “So you are the dolphin. What kind of work went into preparing this dolphin?”
“We work hard and we practiced really hard”
Q: Was it difficult jumping and dancing with this dolphin on your back?”
“Not really I can handle it”
ADRIEN MARTINEZ B HATTIEVILLE HOTSTEPPER
“As you can see our group is representing the pepper. We chose to do the pepper because as you know the people in Hattieville we are really hot, energetic and we have the strength to come out here and do stuff for the first time. We also chose the pepper because of the colors that it holds.”
“I was a little ashamed because you know many of the girls out there are very good and I felt that I could have done better but I’m still happy with what I did”.
But while in the Marion Jones sporting complex energy was high, sponsorship for the bands remains low. The number of bands competing continues to dwindle and for those who stick it out, so does the money.
Marina Welcome
“Really no money no deh”
“The sponsorship this year was horrible. But like I say when we finish Carnival today, I start the next day, you have to keep fundraising. You cannot depend on sponsorship. If you depend on sponsorship then you will look bad.
Q: “Has the fact that money is not flowing lke it used to did that affect you
SHERRYL ARNOLD HATTIEVILLE HOTSTEPPERS
“Yes it affects us but we are not really worrying about the money you know. We just go out there and have fun and not trip about the money.”
Yes it is all about the fun but it was a contest Friday night and before the show was over, the jubilation turned to a near confrontation after Mahogany Street Masqueraders swept the king and queen prizes, shutting out perennial favorite Jump Street Posse.
ANNOUNCER
“ We give to you Queen Miliana the mystic Indian Rochelle Reynolds Mahogany Masqueradors”
Marina Welcome
“This is Jump Street last year and Jump Street Posse will not come out for road march all right. Because this is thief with your draws on all right. Because I mean to say look at these costumes to the things they put out there to win it. What the hell do you do for carnival. They talk about creativity, presentation, originality, damn Jump Street has it all. You cannot put a judge that made a costume to be a judge. There is a judge out there, they know who they are, that made a costume. That’s not fair to the rest of the bands. I think we have creativity and originality. And I know the crowd knows that. For non of these costumes for queens to come in is stealing. So Jump Street Posse will not take part in the road march.”
Q: ”is that a serious threat?”
“It is Yes it is. For Jump Street Posse.”
“I spent a lot of money for this costume and I know the public know that. This is not good judging.”
Audience Shouting “thief” “Thief” “Thief”
And if that's a bluff then carnival organizers are calling it. The city council's Marva Gardiner says that with or without Jump Street there will be a carnival road march on Saturday.
Q: ”Miss welcome has said they will not march in the road march, they are out”
Marva Gardiner
“But miss Marina is an old person she has been in carnival for many years. She knows the rules.”
Q: “Is the carnival organizing committee any at all concerned that arguably one of the best groups out there will not going to be in the road march.
“Well miss Marina is kind of upset right now but I guess she’ll get over it.”
and the controversy has made winning bittersweet for Lila Avila and her Mahogany Street Masqueraders.
“I did not know that carnival was going to be so much stress because only me and some parents made these costumes. The only finance that I had was from Benny’s Home Center, I’m wearing their T-Shirt, Belize Bank gave me a jump start. People promise but they didn’t come thru. My pay check, my gentleman’s pay check parents and I had fundraising. And I came out with a positive attitude to win something and to take it big and for road march I want to do my best”.
And this is a beef best settled out on street b during the road march that is.
The carnival road march takes place this Saturday beginning at 3 pm and
it'll be live right here on channel 7. One man who won't be here to enjoy it is Keith swift. He departed today for New York where he will participate in a 5 week united nation's fellowship, covering the united nation's general assembly. Those wanting to keep up with his progress can do so via a regularly updated "blog" which will appear on our website.