Calling all carnival lovers - SOCarnival parade and food fiesta to end Diversity Week

Ever wondered how the tradition of the Caribbean Carnival came about? Ever wondered about the noisy and extremely upbeat music that Caribbean people are drawn to?

And ever wondered why, during the parade, some wear costumes, some wear rags and some paint themselves from head to toe?

Carnival in the Caribbean was originally held just before Lent and marked the end of revelry and the start of the sacrifices that will be made during the forty-day Lenten season. The word stems from the Latin “Carnevale,” meaning “to put away the meat.” It is a fusion of Latin, Roman and African festivals. Masks and costumes were worn in order to ward off evil spirits.

Today, Carnival is held simply in the spirits of revelry, comradeship and fun. Carnival bands are organized into sections, each depicting a different theme. As a whole, the band itself displays an overall theme. Revelers dance to upbeat SOCA music—a fusion of Cuban, French and African rhythms that usually boast upbeat lyrics and inspires people to unite and have good, clean fun.

This year, the theme for Socarnival is “Cultural Explosion—Portraits of the Caribbean.”

“We came up with the name during one our brainstorming sessions for the Carnival,” Tarlisha Noel, chair of the Socarnival Committee, said. “Under the theme ‘Cultural Explosion,’ we are going to showcase the Caribbean culture as one entity all coming together to create the dynamic that is the Caribbean. Our sub-theme, ‘Portraits of the Caribbean’, will highlight each individual facet of each island that makes it unique.”

Noel explained that although Caribbean people are looked at collectively, their separate cultures are as unique and as varied as the islands they originate from, and the committee wanted to make that apparent.

“As a result, what we have done this year, which hasn’t been done in previous years, was that we made the Carnival more similar to what it is like in the Caribbean. We sectioned off the Carnival band. This will enable us to create a singular theme for each section.”

The band has four sections. One depicts the island of St. Kitts, which is known for sugar cane. Another displays the unique characteristics of Grenada. Known for its many spices, it is called the Spice Isle. The third section is of St. Lucia, famous for its twin peaks, the Pitons. The fourth section is called Explosion, and it is a fiery red costume. In this section, the designers hope to display the explosion of culture, life, dance, music and art that results when all the islands come together.

There will also be a traditional section with blue devils and Dominica’s very own sensay. These are revelers dressed in strips of cloth.

Originally, the strips were made from shredded banana leaves.

“We urge everyone to come out and join us. I promise it will be a blast,” Noel said. “The deadline to apply for costumes is on Wednesday. Yet even if some choose not to participate in the costumed parade, they can still join the parade sporting Socarnival band t-shirts, which are going to be the fashion of the day.”

Noel said that for those who cannot afford a costume, there will be giveaways.

“We want everyone to experience the spectacle of Carnival,” she said. “So we are also offering free costumes. These are costumes that have been worn during previous parades, and although they may not be part of the theme for this year’s Socarnival, they will liven up the parade by their addition of color.”

That’s not all. Soca has also planned a grand Caribbean food sale.

“We will have Caribbean dishes from all parts of the Caribbean,” Noel said. “Curried chicken, jerk chicken, and pelou—a traditional rice peas and meat dish, oiled down and seasoned rice, to name a few.” 

To register for the Socarnival parade, contact Tarlisha Noel at 704.1800 or Adisa Alexis at 583.4540.