– Action-packed 10 days starting this Friday

FUN, frolic and bacchanal are only some of the words that organisers are associating with the highly anticipated 10-day ‘Guyana Carnival’ billed to be hosted in Guyana come May 18 to 27.

Arrangements are now being tidied up as most of the major planning and marketing of the inaugural festival, expected to attract thousands both locally and internationally, has already been done.

The ‘non-stop’ party includes an action-packed period of activities fused with Guyanese food, music, entertainment and masqueraders.

The Guyana Carnival Committee is said to be a dynamic and diverse group of “optimistic and excited people” with the committee’s chairman being Bobby Vieira and other members including Kerwin Bollers, Rawle Ferguson, Navin Singh, Jonathan Beepat, Alana Tiwari, Deslyn Griffith, Akeem Peter, Floyd Rollins, Sophia Dolphin, Drew Thoven, Ashley Peroune, Timeka Marshall, and Jovan Winson.

Other stakeholders supporting the event include the Guyana Police Force, Civil Defence Commission, Red Cross, Mayor and City Council and the Ministry of Business (Tourism Department).

An idea is born
According to the organisers, the idea of the ‘Guyana Carnival’ was birthed out of the country’s 50th Independence celebration when it recorded thousands of arrivals of visitors here.

Then,Minister of Tourism Cathy Hughes had eluded to the fact that Guyana should capitalise on celebrating this event on a grand scale annually. With this call to action serving as the catalyst, the committee said it saw fit to formulate a grand event to satisfy the demand of the masses.

There are 23 events that will be held at this year’s carnival and persons have already started booking tickets for many of the major events. In fact, tickets have already been sold out for some events causing some locations to have to be restocked.

Some events are billed for the National Park at Thomas Lands, and while much repair work has to be done at this facility, Communications Representative Feliz Robertson has assured that it will be ready in time.

In an interview with the Buzz, Robertson said the National Park will be “fully prepared to accommodate our revellers.” “We will never put our patrons in harm’s way, so the management of the Park will do its part and we will do ours,” she added.

The organisers, according to Robertson, are quite sure that the ‘Guyana Carnival’ is an event that can be looked forward to in the long term owing to the amount of work that has gone into making the event a successful one.

“We have marketed Guyana Carnival in the region at Trinidad’s and Jamaica’s Carnival celebrations. We have also received backing from the marketing force behind ‘Crop Over’ in Barbados. Our ‘reps’ were in New York for an official launch there and we have also been aggressively promoting the event on HJ’s radio station which is listened to by thousands online via hj941.com and the BoomFM app,” Robertson offered.

Based on the response so far from patrons and sponsors, she said the organisers can only foresee an even bigger event next year and the years to come. “The next step is to become part of the Department of Tourism’s ‘Calendar of Events’ annually.”

Not overshadowing ‘Mash’

While there has been some talk that the ‘Guyana Carnival’ can possibly overshadow Mashramani celebrations owing to the kind of hype it is being given, Robertson clarified that this is not meant to be the case.

“We have been very clear from the inception that this event is a private partnership that celebrates Independence; ‘Mash’ is a state-funded event for ‘Republic Day.’ There is no competition. As a matter of fact, we do not wish to compete,” said Robertson.

As a company, she recalled that HJ has been hyping up ‘Mash’ for years and has always done its part to support the celebrations. “This is the first carnival in decades and we are adding our hype to it to ensure that people are aware of everything that is planned for their enjoyment.”

Major Events

Tickets have already been purchased for some of the major events like ‘Revel Nation’ on the night of May 25, which is a concert that features headliners like Machel Montano, Bunji Garlin and Fayann Lyons that will be held at the National Stadium. Additionally, the ‘Stink and Dutty Moving Jouvert,’ ‘Scorch Duck Work’ and the ‘Miss World’ pageant will also be hosted.

After the parade on May 26, Robertson said the fun will continue at ‘Soca Rave’ where thousands will likely converge at the National Park to witness Patrice Roberts, Kerwin Dubois, Niala Blackman, Blaxx, Ravi B, KI and many others.
On May 27, the ‘Suits Boat Cruise’ and ‘Kool Out Cooler Fete’ will bring an end to the 10 days of revelry, fun and excitement.

‘Tuesday on the Rocks’, slated for the Marriott Hotel’s parking lot on May 22, and ‘Destraction’, set for May 19 at the National Park, are also two highly anticipated events on the calendar.

“Many are also excited about our ‘Mawning’ breakfast party on May 24 at ‘Marriott’ beach front, Timeka Marshal’s pool party dubbed ‘4TM’ on May 18, ‘Friends at Sea Cruise’ on the 23rd along with the ‘Wet Wednesday’ slated for UG and ‘Big People Party’ set for the same day at the National Park,” Robertson disclosed.

Some of the other notable events are ‘Come Out to Play – Bright colours’ on May 19, ‘Shell Down Monday’ on May 21, and ‘Bare Skinz’ Pool Party on May 22.
Many local singers will also be a big part of the revelry with their recent hits taking centre stage for the Carnival season. These include Big Red, Lil Red, Timeka Marshall, Jomo, Kwesi Ace, Trevon Vibes, Brandon Harding, Lil Corwin, Jay Anderson and local producer Drew Thoven.

Tickets are on sale at Tower Hotel, The Giftland Mall, Nigel’s Supermarket, Exclusive Styles, Clairan’s and That Look Boutique. “Ticket prices are beyond affordable. We have had ‘Early Bird tickets’ for some events at $2000 and many of our outlets have sold out those tickets and had to be restocked with those for $4000 and beyond, while VIP tickets are 10,000 and beyond as well.

The GPF is expected to play a key role at the carnival, along with private security on the ground.