Caribbean Festivals at Home and Abroad Concept of Carnival/Festival Carnival brings about a "second world condition" so that when carnival comes around, another world is created and people go into that world. Notion of carnival as one of “the decentralising forces that militate against official power and ideology. Carnival as the interruption of dominant discourses “to surrender the critical and cultural tools to the dominant class and in this sense, carnival can be seen above all else as a site of urgency.” Mikhail Bakhtin in Rabelais and His World- Uses the term in reference to carnivals of the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Bakhtin one of the key theorists on carnivals. Bakhtin-Carnivals allowed people mostly from the under class to rebel momentarily against social conventions and the class and financial hierarchies that structured society. Bakhtin- Carnival in medieval times offered a “second world and a second life.” Play, mockery, inversion, laughter and profanity all elements in Bakhtin's canival. Bakhtin-Carnival underlined is not a spectacle seen by the people; they live in it and everyone participate because its very idea embraces all the people...It has a universal spirit; it is a special condition of the entire world, of the world's revival and renewal in which all take part.” Bakhtin's views on Carnival have led to many theorists using Bakhtin's views to discuss carnival. Robert Stam- Carnivals can be politically ambiguous affairs that can be egalitarian and emancipatory or oppressive and hierarchical. Mary Russo- Bakhtin “fails to acknowledge or incorporate the social relations of gender...the model of the body politic.” Carol Boyce Davies- Carnival is not at every level and always a site of complete liberation. It may in fact function as a site of containment. For in some cases, the attraction to the carnival is the possibility of seeing female bodies, naked, prostituted and willfully performing for the pleasure of the voyeur. In many locations, men have become spectators and not performers. Umberto Eco-Carnival does not bring about actual liberation and the laws are suspended. For him to enjoy a feast/ carnival you need a law break or doing something which is not allowed. According to him, "without a valid law to break, carnival is impossible." Antonio Benitez-Rojo argues that the Caribbean by nature lives in two world every day. For him, Carnival is complex and can't reduce carnival into binary concepts and Caribbean reality is that always in masquerade. Carnival is a bigger example of what we are always doing. Richard Burton states that when we examine the Trinidad Carnival it is complex and there are no two separate worlds at carnival. Defining Caribbean Festivals “Caribbean festivals embody an aesthetic formally rooted in the early European, African and Asian

traditions brought to the West indies between the 15th and 19th centuries, as well as from 20th century publications, broad casts and artistic movements. Caribbean festival arts are evidence of the transformation worked by a creole aesthetic.” Judith Bettleheim et.al Caribbean Festival Arts: An Introduction Carnivals in the Caribbean developed under very different historical circumstances to Bakhtin's view. Milla Riggio- Carnivals of the Americas positioned in the margins between past and future, both resist and assimilate a broad range of folk traditions and disparate cultural influences reflected in the ethnic intermixtures of its celebrants- Amerindian, Asian, African, European. Antono Benitez- Rojo “Of all possible sociocultural practices, the carnival or any other equivalent festival- is one that best expresses the strategies that the people of the Caribbean have for speaking at once of themsleves and their relation with the world with history, with tradition, with nature, with God” Michael Dash believes that as it specifically relates to the Caribbean, Caribbean festivals are festivals of the street and taking over the street is an important element because before as the enslaved they were not allowed to take to the street without passes based on pass laws. Julia Hewitt-In the Caribbean, carnival as a mode of performing resistance, carries the memory of repression and sacrifice by also of hope, in a sense of becoming the other. Julia Hewitt- Carnival came to be perceived as a signifying element in the representation of the Caribbean experience in terms of resistance against slavery, against acculturation and against the assimilation of african ways and beliefs to european society. Julia Hewitt-Carnival whether preceding lent or dia de reyes, became the commemoration of a collective "longing" for freedom. Carnival offered the conditions for the possibility of change: in the way of hope running away or rebellion. At the same time, public performances allowed slaves to articulate, through dance, music, gestures, or dress, those feelings and desires about which they could not speak openly." Bettleheim et al. In the Caribbean, while the carnival performers knew that the old order would return once carnival was over, and that slavery would again follow the day of Epiphany, the magic of a public performance that conjured freedom left open the possibility, as in all rituals, that the old order could be defeated and a new day could bring about a change coherent with the memories of a time and a space lost. The African sensibility of masquerade is also a major focus of festival arts. Despite their different origins, Africans in the Americas understood and practiced the masquerade, which combined music, dance, costume, sculpture, and drama in a single performance. Bettleheim et al. 241

Antonio Benitez- Rojo -"Of all possible sociocultural practices, the carnival-or any other equivalent festival- is one that best expresses the strategies that the people of the Caribbean have for speaking at once of themselves and their relation with the world, with history, with tradition, with nature, with God.”

"In the Caribbean, carnival as a mode of performing resistance, carries the memory of repression and sacrifice but also of hope, in a sense of becoming other." Julia Hewitt Traditional African aesthetics also can be characterised as assemblage. In Africa, these included animal bones, beads, horns, shells. The enslaved brought these with them and added European objects. Steeve Buckridge-The enslaved used the occasion of carnival to plan armed revolts and to celebrate aspects of their African heritage throughout the Caribbean. For example, in Antigua in 1776, whites were shocked to learn that a slave masquerade had been the organising opportunity and the means of concealment for an attempted overthrow of white rules Behind the mask of fancy dress, the enslaved could act freely and sometimes even mimic their owners. They could be outrageous, going beyond the normal structures of buckra's morality. Moreover, carnival facilitated the creation of elaborately dressed kings and queens-an african aristocracy-as part of the entertainment and street parades. This was a conscious symbolic inversion of the plantation and colonial hierarchies, placing African slaves in a position of prominence and subordinating the planter class. In this manner, slave women experienced some control, if only temporarily. Being queen for a day was a way of having a taste of power, even it it was mock power and fleeting. Steeve Buckridge 107 Dress as a form of masking contained subtexts that were not obvious to whites but were expressive of what is known today as the politics of subalternity. For some slaves, dress carried a discreet message of resistance so hidden that when they were face to face with their enslavers, their motives and thoughts were concealed. Steeve Buckridge 109 Carnival dress, therefore, had multiple layers of meaning, functioning both as resistance and as accommodation to european culture. Steeve Buckridge 106 Carnival dress also functioned as a mask that transformed the persona, permitting individuals to do wild, uninhibited things, such as mocking their owners with antics, taunts and pelvic gyrations. Carnival dress or costume was a mirror of creolisation or cultural adaption, in action. Steeve Buckridge 106 Creolisation included appropriation, as in the case of the carnival costume, and also accommodation which saw African slaves embrace aspects of European dress to create their own fashion. Mas means where people express themselves via dress, dance, song. Mas is an extraordinary performance art. Caribbean Festivals At Home There are numerous Caribbean festivals. These include: Jonkonnu, Junkanoo Jonkanoo, Jankunu, John Canoe or Johnkankus. Crop Over Festivals Rara in Haiti Trinidad Carnival East Indian Festivals such as Hosay.

Jonkonnu Jonkonnu's origins not clear. There are several schools of thought on this. For instance, Richard Allsopp suggests that Jonkonnu is more likely related to the Yoruba word Jonkoliko, one elevated as a figure for fun or disgrace. This seems more logical, especially since many of the jonkonnu masks in jamaica were similar to the annual Yoruba masquerade festival. Steve Buckridge 99 It is a merger of African and European influences and forms part of the festivities at Christmas time. Some of the instruments used to make music have an African influence like the cow horns, gombay and rattles. There are Jonkonnu bands where persons dress as particular characters like the Queen and the flower girl. Some of these characters imitated the planters’ style. Others like the wild Indian pay homage to the colonial oppression that Amerindians endured. There is also masking involved in this rural activity. Sandra Richardson speaking about Jonkonnu notes that the performances were done to appease the plantocracy and to earn money; it afforded them mobility by going from plantation to plantation. Might have been a cover for rebellious activity and colonial mimicry. Cloaking/claiming the otherfestival performers created costumes that speak to the potency of creolisation, play out tensions in society, introduced a cultural genre into a larger performance, maintained survival in a repressive society. House servants danced the style of the plantocracy, not imitating their masters but it was an appropriately recognisable form to create a commentary on their terms. Style commentary related in dress, choice of fabrics and patterns. They took Eurocentric dress and created their own. The costumes display an Afro-Caribbean aesthetic. Masquerade is part of political commentary. Street performers are aware of newspaper reports and, political and royal people were imitated. 1840-41 Johnkunno presented reminders of political and royal authority by performing as royal and political people. During both the Xmas season and August Crop Over, Africans in Jamaica, Antigua and other places, performed the Joncanoe or John Canoe, a well established cultural ritual. Using elaborate head dresses and masks, enslaved persons performed this ritual as part of their statement about the relationship between the spirit world and social living. It is said to have had its origins at Axim, a major clave trading port on the Gold Coast. The Antigua Junkanoo or Jonkonnu was mostly a Xmas spectacle. In St. Vincent blacks also celebrated Crop Over and Xmas with Junkanoo festivals. In the Bahamas, Junkanoo has become established black arts and culture by the late eighteenth century and was associated with Xmas when 'Negroes have been seen beating their tambourines and dancing the whole day'. The Jonkonnu and their festivities in Jamaica's black community were related in origins to the seasonal Crop Over fetes and festivals in Caribbean Slavery Hilary Beckles 256-57 It is a form of Afro-Caribbean masquerade, characters repeat themselves in some form across the region, it is an aspect of masquerade, accompanied by music, that is a continuum.

In no two places are the festivals exactly the same, in Belize it seems to have a direct Jamaican connection while contemporary Bahamian junkanoo shares only a nomenclature with the Jamaican practice -John Nunley. Jonkonnu Jamaica It is a Jamaican street festival characterised by an entourage of wire screen masked and costumed male dancers, performing mimed variations of an established repertoire of dance steps and accompanied by small musical corps. They perform sometimes at Xmas but more often on an important state occasions. Seen since at least beginning of 18th century in Jamaica, variations of this festival occur in many British influenced Caribbean nations including Belize, St. Kitts and nevis, Guyana and Bermuda- John Nunley In Jamaica today it consists of all male entourages who are either Roots Jonkonnu maskers or members of Fancy Dress bands. The Roots masqueraders include characters such as cow head, horse head, pitch patchy, devil, warrior and Amerindian. Mostly in eastern region of Jamaica and strongly neo-African in style, fancy dress mainly from western Jamaica and show strong European influence, incorporating courtly attire of such characters as kings, queens and courtier, other characters include sailor and sweeper. It is a secular festival though thought to be Christian because it is celebrated at Xmas time. Resurgence via competitions in the 1950s. In the 1970s, social unrest was so marked that Jonkonnu performers were reluctant to appear on the streets of Jamaica. After the election of 1976 many Jonkonnu bands admitted to the consequences of street violence on their performances and only participated in local competitions or special showcases such as independence celebrations. After the violent election and the coming to power of Edward Seaga, Jonkonnu as a street festival was on the decline. In Jamaica, in general it has become more and more a performance for participants rather than a participatory event within a neighbourhood, However, it still has a focus for national identification and neighbourbood solidarity among older Jamaicans. It bears testimony to the process of creolisation as the African influence remained through costume and music such as wire screen masks, cloth head wraps and head dresses- fife and drum, a scraper, grater, banjo, shak shak, triangle and tambourine. John Canoe Belize Seen in Belize in early twentieth century Costume and performance elements shared by other Caribbean performances implemented in Belize. It appears on both Xmas and boxing day

There are both male and female costumes. It has retained the same structure since the early twentieth century. Jonkonnu Bahamas In 1920s Nassau street parade became known as John Canoes By mid 1920s participants increased 1944 parades suspended because of “hooliganism” Revived in 1947, temporarily halted again between 1953-55. Government regulations have changed its character and transformed festive elements due to tourism Government took over festival, commercialised it and took over 1930s. Government saying celebrations should not be on Xmas day. Government involvement curtailed costume design, masks not as prevalent, early days costumes made of sponge, then paper then imported crepe paper Trinidad influence now because of tourism and Government intervention so costumes have become larger resembling those in Trinidad. Crop Over Festival Harvest Home-a southern English medieval term crop they celebrated was corn, brought it in on a hock cart, workers would gather for a celebration. Key aspect was feast sponsored by the lord and lady who would sit to supper with laboureres. There was music, and dancing. The Yam Festival was a West African festival to celebrate the crop of Yam and in Barbados the two merged, an example of creolisation- The merging of African and European cultures. Hilary Beckles- Crop Over is a symbol of resistance, dances planning for revolt, to get away from plantation life. Jerome Handler-"stealing" food and finery, religion critical part of celebrations, able to travel for fetes, although there were laws in place the slaves continued to do what the liked in defiance e.g .drumming element of creolisation. Crop Over was celebrated across Barbados on the various estates. Historically ,"crop over" derived from the days of plantation slavery where the end of the sugar season was celebrated with a procession of decorated carts bringing in the last load of cane. A party in the mill yard would then ensue. The associated ceremonial burning of an effigy of Mr. Harding symbolised both the cruelty of the overseers and the hard times which lay ahead. Apart from the delivery of the canes and the sponsored coronation of the King and Queen of the crop, Crop Over of today does not resemble that of Crop Over of yesteryear, which included the ever popular decorated cart parade, sporting and cultural activities like goat and donkey cart. racing, plantations fairs, events were all over the island. Characters such as Mother Sally, steel donkey, shaggy bears, stiltmen were seen. Curwen Best Culture at the cutting edge - In 1958, the Jaycees experimented with a type of carnival that was similar to Trinidad's. At first this festival did not incorporate a calypso contest but in 1960 one was added. Best argues that the festival was elitist in orientation. The first calypso competition attracted five calypsonians. This he said showed the state of calypso and a reflection of the cultural divide between the white elite who organised the festival and their lower

class others. The number of competitors increased to 22 in 1962. The Jaycees project failed to sustain a meaningful practice because of unexamined social, political, historical issues upon which a fragile tradition was being constructed. The new festival was a reworking of a festival celebrated by the enslaved on Barbadian plantations In Barbados, Crop Over was revived in 1974 to boost the tourism trade and has been a major Caribbean festival. Elombe Mottley played a pivotal role in the development of Crop Over . Mottley through the Yoruba House took on the task of revealing and valourising the African-Barbadian cultural heritage, and reestablishing its continental African connections. Afro-Barbadian dance, art, drumming, poetry, drama, history, cultural research, scholarship and intellectual enquiry were all put on a new plane of importance, exploration and acceptance. The government initiative circumvented some of the tensions associated with class and race in Barbados. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s Crop Over and calypso developed in the shadows of controversy and paradox. In 1983 the National Cultural Foundation was established, and has been conceptualising and producing the festival. In recent years, the Crop Over Festival is spread over a three week period, commencing with the Opening Gala and Ceremonial Delivery of the Last Canes and culminating with the costume parade through the streets leading to the Spring Garden Highway - Grand Kadooment. Other events include Pic-O-De Crop, Junior Monarch, Junior Kadooment, Cohobblopot and Party Monarch competitions. Trinidad Carnival Trinidad carnival emerged in the nineteenth century from the celebrations of liberated enslaved Africans embodying African ways and values and the carnival traditions of catholic Europe as carried to the Caribbean perhaps by the Spanish and certainly by the French planters-slave owners. Richard Schechner Trinidad carnival is a celebration of former slaves and former masters enjoying and to some degree satirising each others cultural heritages. Richard Scehner Trinidad carnival in the the 21st century has become both a centripetal hub and a centrifugal force for carnival. Musical and masking styles that flow inwards to the islands of Trinidad and Tobago and radiate outward from them to the world at large. This kind of complexity confounds bakhtinian theory. Schechner 4 Trinidad carnival actually both critiques official culture and supports. It is an event both "of the people" and "of the nation". Trinidad carnival is not now, nor was it ever, nor can it ever be static. Today carnival is not what it was in the nineteenth or mid twentieth century. Emancipation, independence and the emergence of it on the world stage, have all affected carnival. Unlike the popular democracy of Bakhtin's model, Trinidad carnival is fiercely competitive and hierarchical. The official carnival which climaxes with competitors performing on the Queen's Park savannah stage to determine the kings and queens, top steel bands, calypsonians involves fierce

struggles decided by judges. Carnival is an essential component of the history of resistance, rebellion and cultural self determination in Trinidad. Though trinidad carnival mas is known internationally, mainly for its grand costumes and massive celebrations in Port-of-Spain. There are also those that still produce the traditional masquerades in a more conventional way, often outside the capital system. In Carapichaima, a traditionally East Indian area, in the centre, there has been a Monday carnival every year since 1947 which is now the largest carnival monday festival in the island-Bridget Brereton.

Rara in Haiti Rara is both an extension of and deflection from vodou, and though possession as such rarely occurs during Rara processions, mass hypnotism and catharsis might be said to be the strongest elements of organisation in these bands. Richard Burton Significantly, during the period when Rara is celebrated, essentially from the end of carnival to Easter Sunday, no vodou ceremonies are held in Haiti. Rara begins at midnight on Mardi Gras with the ritual of brule -carnaval when the carnival masques are ceremonially incinerated, and the rara dancers make a black cross n their brows with the ashes. Burton The beating drums that have previously been dedicated to the petro loas in ceremonies in the hounfour, bands move off and, for the duration of Lent and the Easter process noisily and aggressively. Burton Rara probably comes from the Yoruba word for loudly- along country roads, accosting and defying other bands with which they engage in a series of combative rituals, notably a haitian version of stick fighting known as jonc after the metal tipped staff that is often left to sleep overnight in the hounfour or cemetery to enhance the magic powers it is believed to contain. Burton Dolores Yonker- Rara gains impetus during each weekend of lent. They have shrill whistles, drums, rara bands have flag bearers, master or chief of band and the avant garde , clad in assemblages of cloth, mirrors, sequins etc. Dolores Yonker-Bands move from the village into the country side, economic transactions and rituals take place at crucial sites. At intervals, baths and other treatments are administered as rites of magical protection and purification. The music of the Rara is dominated by the vaccines which consist of three of four bamboo tubes of varying dimensions called maman, foula or seconde and petite. They are often painted, as are the drums, the labimi or conch shell also used. Magic and mysticism pervade rara. talismans are sold on the streets. Rara in other words embodies the familiar carnival phenomenon of virtual combat between bands. Rara so clearly ties with vodou, it also reaches out to the construction of political power in Haiti, with its well documented links to the secret societies and through and beyond them to the networks of chefs de section, houngans and tonton macoutes. Burton Rara is a magical mirror for the operations of power in Haiti. It invites the combative compulsion, the motivation to compete violently for dominance and that just beneath its surface lurks the threat of violence and vengeance controlled by military discipline...Burton

Dolores Yonker-Rara like vodoun is a dynamic institution, incorporating change and regional variations. It serves as a cohesive and identifying force in smaller communities. It stimulates a healthy competition among them. Dolores Yonker-Uncertainties of the Haitian economy and interclass tensions have had marked effects on Rara. Dwindling funds have stifled some of the artistry such as the elaborate headgear in the forms of European crowns and military caps, feathered straw hats, nevertheless cheap colourful cloth and simple objects are used to make striking and original assemblages. small mirrors, combs, discarded packaging, buttons, hardware items are used Dolores Yonker- The formation and continuity of the bands help consolidate and stabilise local authority. The band itself forms a miniature government. It has been and continues to be a reservoir of potential assistance during times of political instability. East Indian Festivals -Hosay In the 1850s, the Muslim festival of Muharram brought Muslims, Hindus, Afro-Trinidadians, Jamaicans, Guyanese and Surinamese together in ways that suggest a developing solidarity. In Trinidad, the first Hosay procession was likely in 1850 but was a source of concern for the planters. They believed that the festival could threaten law and order and colonial rule itself. Finally an ordinance was passed in July 1884 banning Hosay from public roads. There was a confrontation which led to police firing leaving four dead and fifty wounded on October 30, 1884. A later confrontation at the Mon Repos entrance to San Fernando resulted in the deaths of 12 and wounding of 100. Hosay festivals were successfully contained without incident from 1885 to 1900. Important to this are the tadja, prayers and tassa music. Caribbean Festivals in the Diaspora Brooklyn-Eastern Parkway Toronto-Caribana Nottinghill Gate- England Riggio -By creating a diaspora of its own, in cities ranging from Toronto, Tokoyo, Brooklyn, Miami and fifty odd other US, english and european cities, with influences in Asia, Australia, West indian carnival has added a new chapter to carnival story. Carnival has periodically provided the occasion for actual violence, sometimes as clashes between organised groups of carnival celebrants, sometimes as social protest arising from class or race conflictsTrinidad 1881, Notting hill, London, 1976) Riggio- Diasporic carnivals such as those in Toronto, Notting hill or Brooklyn, there is a much sharper line of division between the maskers who more normally "parade" through the streets and the watching public (in toronto an actual fence separates the two). The "parade" may own the streets for a time, but always with the awareness that this is either by permission, or conversely in a hostile environment.

John Nunley- The Brooklyn Labour Day Carnival, Nottinghill Hill Gate Carnival and the Toronto Caribana festival were all formally organised in the 1960s , when migrants from the Caribbean began to have significant impact on the demographics of these cities. John Nunley- It was no coincidence that the festivals in London, Brooklyn and Toronto found their present form immediately after most Caribbean countries of the English speaking Caribbean became independent , when a new spirit of Caribbean nationalism emerged. In large metropolitan cities where migrants had settled, this new status gave Caribbean expats confidence to assert their cultural forms overtly in foreign countries, albeit adapting them to the peculiarities of each new environment. In this respect, masquerade is a liberating experience. Labour Day John Nunley-Masquerading appeared in Harlem in the 1920s A Trinidadian named Jessie Wardle organised the first Labour Day celebration in 1947 to remind her of carnival at home. The festival grew until 1964 when dissident elements in the Black Power movement deemed the event detrimental to their interests and provoked young blacks to pelt paraders with stones, cans and bottles. Such disruptions contributed to the cancellation of the Harlem festival. Currently, over 2 million people watch this festival. Many elements of 'home' are seen via food, drink, music, artistes that perform on the trucks, the national colours of the flags of the Caribbean, the dressing up in national colours of the islands West Indians in New York identify with. Labour Day a way to remember and celebrate 'home.' Security is extremely tight in Brooklyn with 40 or more officers at every intersection of the Eastern Parkway. Despite the enormous crowd, the festival has remained relatively peaceful and safe. Nottinghill No one person or group could be said to have brought carnival Caribbean style to england. A key personality in the beginnings of carnival was Rhaune Laslett, a london born woman. Later, under the leadership of Vernon Fellows, Russell Henderson and Junior Telfer, the festival took on a decidedly Trinidadian character, with steel bands forming the backbone of the event. These bands brought with them the masqueraders of carnival. Steel band director Malcolm Thomas and other pan groups organised mask sections thoughout the 1970s under the leadership of Selwyn Baptiste, a musician from Trinidad and a newly formed carnival development committee established in 1975. Designers and masquerade band leaders brought out large bands illustrating African fantasy, flora , fauna ,sailors, Jonkonnu etc. The Nottinghill celebration has been marred by violence. In 1976, some 250 000 disillusioned West Indian youths, encouraged by the revolutionary lyrics of reggae, rioted against 1500 police. Until end of the 1970s, the festival was characterised by tension, even though the sounds of reggae, steel and calypso were becoming more popular. The tension was evident in the structure of the carnival concerning the rivalry between the carnival development committee and the carnival and arts committee. The latter having been founded by

disaffected CDC members with strong political views which they believed should be expressed in carnival. Notting hill gate carnival is now one of the largest festivals in Europe, attracting over half million people Toronto Caribana Each year since 1968 Caribana has grown in numbers and complexity. Caribana attracts nearly half a million people and draws nearly $30 million in revenue Carnival, Economics and Cultural Industries Riggio- Carnival is not free from market forces, especially in a nation such as Trinidad that attempts to market the festival itself as a national product. The impulse to make money, to mass-manufacture costumes, to develop the sort of consumerism that would regulate behaviour in the name of "decency" partly to promote profit has from the beginning cohabited with the impulse to transgressive behaviour in carnival. Keith Nurse-The term cultural industry describes the role of cultural entrepreneurs and arts enterprises, for-profit as well as not-for-profit in the production, distribution and consumption of film, television, books, music, theatre, dance, visual arts, masquerade, multimedia, animation and so on. The cultural industries sector is not just a commercial arena, it is an aesthetic and social space where spiritual values, psychic meaning and bodily pleasures are displayed, enacted and represented Keith Nurse-Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival generates close to 40,000 visitors and US$15 million in foreign currency earnings. Government expenditure on Carnival yields a ratio of benefits to cost of 7 to 1. London’s Notting Hill Carnival generates 2 million visitors and UK£30 million expenditure; Toronto’s Caribana 1 million visitors and Can.$200 million; Brooklyn’s Labor Day 2 million participants and US$70 million. Keith Nurse-Caribbean festivals have also made a significant impact on the regional tourism sector in terms of creating a new tourism season and/or filling the void in the tourism calendar by boosting airlifts and improving hotel occupancy levels. Keith Nurse-Caribbean festivals have done much to generate new tourism demand from the short break travel market, as well as from diasporic and intra-regional tourist, groupings that are largely omitted in the tourist marketing plans of most Caribbean tourism organisations. Keith Nurse-The spending of festival tourists, which is considered “new” or incremental and counts as an export industry, has been very significant as a share of total visitor expenditure, where the data on visitor arrivals have been documented by exit surveys. Keith Nurse- Caribbean festivals create a strong demand-pull for visitors. The best case is that of Trinidad carnival. The carnival is the largest festival in the region in terms of visitor arrivals and expenditures. Arrivals have grown by 60 per cent since the late 1990s such that by 2004 there were over 40,000 visitors that spent approximately US$28 million, over 10 per cent of annual visitor expenditures. The festival with the next best performance was that of St. Lucia Jazz, which had 11,041 visitors and expenditures of $14.8 million in 2000. The Barbados Crop Over festival, after a significant drop in arrivals in the late 1990s attracted 3,485 visitors in 2000 that spent $3.2 million in visitor expenditures.

Keith Nurse Festivals

Year

Arrivals 40,455 11,041 3,485

Trinidad & Tobago 2004 Carnival St. Lucia Jazz 2000 festival Barbados Crop Over 2000

Visitor Expenditures US$m 28.0 14.8 3.2

Keith Nurse's research in 2010 notes- Mas players spend about $93.4 million, and fetes earn over $500 million as part of a total carnival economic contribution of $1.3 billion. Carnival can be argued to be an important contributor to an even bigger business – the tourism economy. An industry which is estimated at $5.7 billion and of which the domestic tourism component comprises about 70%. However, do more tourists translate into more money for hoteliers? For example in Trinidad, The Trinidad Hotels, Restaurants and Tourism Association (THRTA) pointed out that for carnival 2010, Port-of-Spain's room stock increased by 425 rooms – there were about 10 000 room nights available, compared to 7 574 room nights in 2009. To fill all these rooms, rates came down by 17.6% in February 2010 but occupancy levels were still down 6.5% on 2009 levels Keith Nurse- Caribbean festivals contribute to the development of the cultural industries and arts sector. Festivals are important to the entertainment sector through creating new clients, markets and media exposure thereby facilitating export expansion. It also stimulates infrastructure development, heritage conservation and investment into the arts. Carnivals stimulate commercial activity and generate revenue in cultural industries and tourism hospitality. Carnivals attract media attention-Rihanna was recently used as part of Barbados' promotion for Crop Over. Carnivals drive festival tourism that has created an alternative and sustainable source of tourism revenue. Festival tourism also makes an important contribution to the wider economy in that it (1) increases government tax receipts, generates employment and sectoral linkages between the tourism, travel and cultural industries: (2) it is a cost effective means of building destination image and attracts new business sponsorship and cross promotion opportunities; (3) it has a multiplier effect on the wider economy and a spillover effect on ancillary sectors like the media and advertising industries, auto rentals and restaurants. Keith Nurse- The diasporic Caribbean carnivals are an important feature of the cultural industries in Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean because they account for a large percentage of the year-round work for musical artists and other carnivalists, such as costume designers.

These carnivals have grown rapidly since the early 1990s and are now the largest street festivals and generators of economic activity in their respective locations (see Table below). The ‘Notting Hill’ carnival attracts over 2 million people over two days and generates over £93 million in audience and visitor expenditures. Similarly, the ‘Labour Day’ carnival in New York earns US$300 million while the ‘Caribana’ festival in Toronto generates CND$200 million. TABLE 3: THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF DIASPORIC CARIBBEAN CARNIVALS Diasporic carnivals Attendance Festival Expenditures Caribana, Toronto 1 million Cnd$200 million Labour Day, New York 3.5 million US$300 million Notting Hill, London 2 million £93 million

See Works by the following for further reading. These include: Judith Bettleheim et al. Caribbean Festival Arts: An Introduction Keith Nurse THE CULTURAL INDUSTRIES AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES Curwen Best- Culture @ the Cutting Edge Hilary Beckles- Crop Over Fetes and Festivals in Caribbean Slavery Mikhail Bakhtin-Rabelais and His World Richard Burton-Afro-Creole Power, Opposition and Play in the Caribbean Milla Riggio-Carnival in Action Steeve Buckridge- The Language of Dress John Nunley-Caribbean Festival Arts: Each and Every Bit