Carnival backstage | Closeup By Georgia Popplewell and Laura Dowrich-Phillips | Issue 161 (January/February 2020) Carnival is a time to shine: from performers on the soca and calypso stage to costumed masqueraders in the street and fete-goers showing off their most acrobatic dance moves. But “the greatest show on earth” wouldn’t be possible without the dedication of the many thousands who work behind the scenes — year-round or seasonally — on the organisation and logistics of the festival. Laura Dowrich-Phillips and Georgia Popplewell meet four of the people whose backstage efforts make Carnival happen
Kambule: on morning ground | Snapshot By Attillah Springer | Issue 161 (January/February 2020) Early each Carnival Friday morning, before dawn breaks, crowds assemble at Piccadilly Greens in east Port of Spain for a re-enactment of a key event in the history of Trinidad — and of Carnival itself. Attillah Springer gives an intimate account of Kambule, when the spirits of the ancestors are invoked in a ritual of memory, story, song, and resistance
Look mas | Portfolio By Caribbean Beat | Issue 161 (January/February 2020) Photographer Jason C. Audain’s portraits of traditional Carnival masqueraders record both their intricate costumes and the human energy that powers their performance
The return of the baby doll | Backstory By Amanda T. McIntyre and Jarula M.I. Wegner | Issue 161 (January/February 2020) With a frilly dress and bonnet, carrying a replica of an infant, the traditional Baby Doll is a playful Carnival character with a serious message about the social roles of women and men. A new generation of activists have adopted the Baby Doll as form of feminist intervention, write Amanda T. McIntyre and Jarula M.I. Wegner — like the masqueraders behind the Belmont Baby Dolls band
Gilbert “Dibo” Doran: “I want my legacy to live on” | Own words By Nelly Rosa | Issue 161 (January/February 2020) Gilbert “Dibo” Doran, Curaçao’s 2019 King of Tumba, on his decade-long journey to winning the title, the role of culture in national identity, and Carnival as a time of solidarity — as told to Nelly Rosa
K2K — Where fashion meets mas (with a purpose) By Caribbean Beat | Issue 161 (January/February 2020) Brand: K2K Alliance & Partners 2020 Collection: The Greatest Show Section: The Power of Believing (Believe that you can, and you will) Photography: Gary Jordan Photography MUA: Dion Samuel Model: Soowan Bramble Website: k2k-carnival.com
Written for the young of all ages | Closeup By Kimberly De Souza | Issue 160 (November/December 2019) Young adult (or YA) literature is aimed at teenage readers, but appeals to many grownups, too. And in recent years there’s been a boom in Caribbean YA, Kimberly De Souza reports, as she meets five writers telling innovative stories about Caribbean youth
The Jimmy October Project | Snapshot By Laura Dowrich-Phillips | Issue 160 (November/December 2019) “New Calypso” is how twenty-four-year-old Jimmy October describes his genre-bending music — a sound that feels like “home” to listeners in Trinidad and Tobago but also appeals to international audiences. Laura Dowrich-Phillips learns more
The Ghetto Biennale: when art is defiance | Backstory By Nixon Nelson | Issue 160 (November/December 2019) Ten years ago, a group of artists in Haiti launched an audacious, even provocative, project: the Ghetto Biennale, drawing international attention to the creative community in Port-au-Prince’s Grand Rue. The event’s tensions and discomforts are at the heart of its mission, writes Nixon Nelson, as the Ghetto Biennale prepares to stage its sixth edition
Dionne Brand: The reinvention of poetry | Closeup By Shivanee Ramlochan | Issue 159 (September/October 2019) Born in Trinidad and based in Canada, writer Dionne Brand has spent decades exploring the transgressive possibilities of poetry, says Shivanee Ramlochan — breaking through boundaries of genre in her quest to understand the shapeshifting self
Machel Cedenio: Racing for the hit | Snapshot By Sheldon Waithe | Issue 159 (September/October 2019) When T&T’s men’s 4×400-metre team won gold at the 2019 World Relays last May, it was thanks to a “finish for the ages” by Machel Cedenio. As Sheldon Waithe reports, the young athlete grounds himself with family support and mental preparation long before he even takes to the track
Kelly Sinnapah Mary: Riddles of survival | Portfolio By Shereen Ali | Issue 159 (September/October 2019) Working across mediums, Guadeloupean artist Kelly Sinnapah Mary creates images with a fairytale quality, mingling cruelty and enchantment, as she explores postcolonial dilemmas and the resistance of self-invention, writes Shereen Ann Ali
Far and near — Milton Kam | Panorama By Shelly-Ann Inniss | Issue 158 (July/August 2019) Suriname’s indigenous communities walk a line between the traditional and the contemporary, distance and proximity — documented in a new book of photographs by Milton Kam
Koffee: Strong and sweet | Backstory By Nazma Muller | Issue 158 (July/August 2019) Dancehall’s latest sensation, nineteen-year-old Koffee, is captivating fans across the globe with her vibesy toasting, catchy riddims, and cheeky lyrics. Nazma Muller reports on the pint-sized Jamaican phenomenon with the relentlessly positive attitude
Naomi Osaka: “It was never my goal to blend in” | Snapshot By Caroline Taylor | Issue 158 (July/August 2019) For anyone who likes easy answers to questions of identity, Naomi Osaka is a conundrum: half-Haitian, half-Japanese, raised for part of her childhood in New York City, visibly hybrid. As Caroline Taylor learns, Osaka hasn’t always been comfortable with the role of mixed-race role model — but she’s learning to embrace it, on her own terms
Jean-Ulrick Désert: look and look again | Closeup By Andre Bagoo | Issue 157 (May/June 2019) Born in Haiti, currently based in Berlin, Jean-Ulrick Désert may be a citizen of the world — but his ideas are shaped by his Caribbean roots. A kind of discomfort that makes you look closer is key to this artist’s work, writes Andre Bagoo
Letitia Wright | Backstory By Caroline Taylor | Issue 157 (May/June 2019) Growing up in Guyana, Letitia Wright never imagined a Hollywood career. But after a string of stage and TV roles and early recognition of her talent, her casting in the blockbuster movie Black Panther was the break every actor hopes for, says Caroline Taylor
Sir Hilary Beckles: “I’m aware of how fragile the Caribbean is” | Own words By Shelly-Ann Inniss | Issue 157 (May/June 2019) Sir Hilary Beckles, Barbadian historian, cricket enthusiast, and UWI vice chancellor, on his intellectual formation, the role of a Caribbean university, and the moral imperative of slavery reparations — as told to Shelly-Ann Inniss
Destra Garcia: queen of queens | Closeup By Nigel Campbell | Issue 156 (March/April 2019) T&T’s self-proclaimed Queen of Bacchanal is a Carnival mainstay. But, two decades into her career, Destra Garcia remains underestimated by local fans and critics, argues Nigel A. Campbell
Stories of steel | Panorama By Mark Lyndersay and Sharmain Baboolal | Issue 156 (March/April 2019) Carnival is the season of steelpan. But behind the Panorama stage, the future of T&T’s national musical instrument will be shaped by administrators, craftspeople, arrangers, and educators — like these men and women profiled by writer Sharmain Baboolal and photographer Mark Lyndersay
Alicia Alonso: forever prima | Backstory By Nazma Muller | Issue 156 (March/April 2019) How did Havana come to be one of the world’s leading centres of classical ballet? Nazma Muller tells the story of prima donna assoluta Alicia Alonso, and her influence on generations of Cuban dancers
Unfinished Sentences: the inheritance of loss | Snapshot By Georgia Popplewell | Issue 156 (March/April 2019) Trinidadian filmmaker Mariel Brown set out to make a straightforward documentary about her writer father. But as Unfinished Sentences evolved, it turned into a nuanced exploration of grief, family, and artistic ambition, writes Georgia Popplewell
