Stephen Weir articles, editorials and popular social media weir postings

Yorkdale hosting the brand new Carnival Portal   Stephen Weir :  Post Covid days in Toronto are strange times indeed. Who’d ever guess that the place to get a good fix of 2022 Carnival magic is inside the posh super mall, Yorkdale.  And, totally out-of-character for all that makes Yorkdale a to-die for shopping experience, Carnival Portal is a new carnival happening that is admission free! Located at the Allan Expressway and Highway 401, the indoor mall is better known for selling $100,000 watches and Tesla cars indoors than having a pop-up portal of the Caribbean Canadian Carnival Arts.  Carnival Portal, a joint project of the City of Toronto and Oxford Properties (owners of Yorkdale) which opens today (June 23 rd ) and runs to September 4th celebrates all that is carnival.  The exhibition, located in the middle of the mall, is divided into two rooms: one displaying costumes, headpieces and photography, the other is an augmented and virtual reality experiences ...

SugaCayne Can And They Will Candice and Dwayne Dixon have launched a new competitive Mas Band that is using 21st century cutting edge technology to put a new Wow factor into the costumes their dancers will be wearing down the road. Their name is SugaCayne, and the mas band already has chosen a costume launch location and date, five section leaders and a theme name – Liquid Courage – that comes with a double meaning. “ Liquid Courage brings to mind something you need to give you the courage to do something you might never ever do (like putting on a mas costume and dancing down Lakeshore Blvd in the annual Toronto parade),” explains SugaCayne co-founder Dwayne Dixon. “Taking it a lot deeper, our costumes will, in part, be constructed using 3-D technology making spectacular costumes that you can’t make with just wire and glue. These 3-D created parts start off in a liquid state, and that takes some courage.” SugaCayne Designs has made a name for itself by designing and building...