CARIBANA 2022 AND JAMAAL MAGLOIRE GETS READY
The Parade Is A Go In 2022
Jamaal’s Revellers the First Band To Announce Launch
By Stephen Weir
Dust off your pans, tune up your singing voice, break out your costume. It is going to happen (probably).
Laverne Garcia the chair of the Toronto Caribbean Carnival confirmed to the Caribbean Camera that it is full speed ahead for the 55th Toronto Caribbean Carnival's Grand Parade on July 31st along the Lakeshore.
It was probably the worst kept secret at City Hall. The major events in the city from Pride to the Toronto Film Festival have all been given permission by Toronto and the Province to stage their annual events -- provided of course that Canada does not get hit by another wave of Covid.
“We will ensure compliance with all public health and safety precautions as the safety and health of the community is our top priority,” Garcia confirmed to the media last week. “This year marks our 55th Emerald Anniversary, and we are thrilled to celebrate the freedom, diversity and inclusion that makes up the carnival arts,” she added.
This good news announcement has already spurred on the Toronto Revellers Mas Band to start selling tickets for an April 2nd costume launch. They are the first Mas Band to confirm that they are back in business for the coming 2022 Grand Parade and festival.
Owned by NBA great Jaamal Magloire, the Toronto Revellers are known for staging unique launch parties. Part entertainment, Part celebs and part fashion show, the late-night fete showcases the costumes that will be worn by hundreds and hundreds of Revellers in the July 31st parade. The costumes worn on stage by male and female models can be purchased at the Launch and are then hand-made over the spring and early at their Mas Camp Headquarters in time for the festival.
In past parades the Revellers has been one of the large bands on the road with an estimated 1,000 costumed paraders dancing on the road. It has been two summers since there was a parade, it is unknown at this point how many people will sign up to join a Mas Band and hit the road post pandemic.
The Revellers Costume Showcase will be held at the Don on Danforth near Main and Danforth Avenue in East York. It is a multi-purpose event space that has both a stage theatre and large banquet hall. The Reveller’s launch will be the first carnival fete at the Don, a newly renovated heritage building.
“We are officially launching our costumes for the 2022 Toronto Carnival Season!” said the Revellers Band in a recent social media post. “You do not want to miss this! “What's the theme this year? You will just have to guess!”
Tickets for the season’s first evening costume launch are $50 per person.
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