Stephen Weir articles, editorials and popular social media weir postings

  Not the last carnival of the summer B y Stephen Weir   It didn’t stop their parade last weekend, but that province wide Saturday’s rainstorm soaked the city of Belleville almost as much as what happened in Toronto. The third annual Belleville Caribbean Parade had a start time of 1 p.m last Saturday and according to weather reports on the day, that’s just about when it started raining on the small city. By 2 p.m., there was fog and a full-blown thunderstorm.   It takes more than rain to stop a carnival parade, but it did impact the size of the audience that normally line the side of the road to cheer on the revellers and a number of King and Queen costumes conscripted from last month’s Toronto Caribbean Carnival competition. “Despite a little rain, the celebration was nothing short of amazing,” reported the organizers of the annual Belleville Caribbean Festival. “The vibrant culture, delicious food, and lively music brought our community together in the best way possible...

WIDAFEST WINDSOR'S NEW AFRO/CARRIBEAN FESTIVAL IN JULY Although this will be the first year that Windsor will have an African/Caribbean outdoor downtown festival, WIDAFEST will have an experienced festival hand on the tiller. Chris Alexander, a long-time event organizer and former Chief Operating Officer of the Toronto Caribbean Carnival, is now the festival's vice-president and is assisting in getting the seven-day event off the ground. WIDAFEST is the buzzword name for the Windsor International Diaspora African Festival, which is set to make its debut in the city from July 23rd to 30th. It will showcase the rich and diverse cultures of Africa and the Caribbean diaspora  outdoors in downtown Windsor "We are excited to be launching WIDAFEST along Windsor ’ s safe people-friendly Detroit River waterfront," said Chris Alexander. "Windsor is a growing diverse city, and we plan to make this a popular annual event for the people of Windsor and Detroit. ” The festival ...

Carnival Mas or Corona Mess?  Not a Lot of Answers in this Time of Crisis By Stephen Weir Breaking News: I received a note from the SunLime Mas Band l this evening announcing that they have postponed their previously announced March 29th virtual launch "to a later date. We will keep you updated as time goes on". We have also received a notice from the Toronto Revellers that their Saturday April 11th costume launch is being postponed until May. " Due to the current global crisis, we are postponing our band launch to a date in May (TBD)." The picture above is from the SunLime's model shoot which was held two weeks ago. Although the SunLime band has embargoed pictures and videos from that costume photo shoot, I did get permission to use this photograph (again) with the model blurred to obscure the costume. What the Mas Camps, Pan Bands and the Festival Management Committee need right now is the city’s biggest Crystal Ball. Something that will ans...

The Grand Old Grande Parade.  Best hang on to your feathers. Sure the parade is in its 52nd year and it is very much the same old same old. However, there are additions and changes to the grand old Grand Parade that spectators should be aware of to get the most out of the August 3rd  world famous road march. First of all the parade is bigger, noisier and longer than last year – the route is 8km in length almost twice the distance in2018.  The parade is larger and will take much longer to play out along Lakeshore Blvd and in the Exhibition Place grounds. Third, the pan orchestras are back in the parade and will certainly make themselves heard above the roar of the crowd. Chris Alexander the head honcho at the carnival office spoke to the Caribbean Camera about the changes and upgrades to the Saturday parade. The bands, beginning at 9.30 am will present themselves in this order: guest bands, competitive bands and then non-competitive ban...

Sponsor-less but Happy.  The Toronto Caribbean Carnival Rolls out a summer of fun, fancy and jammin' By Stephen Weir Lewis and Davis - photo by Anthony Berot OK break out the roti, fire up the air horn, put on the beads and glitter, it is Carnival time in Toronto.  Yesterday the organizer of the annual Toronto Caribbean Carnival held a loud fun kick-off to their 52nd year with a press conference at the lakeside Boulevard Yacht Club. While Mas models paraded in costume and steel pan players performed, 30 or so Toronto media came into the club’s ballroom to hear what is new and different about the summer festival that begins in just 42 days.   In 2019 the festival runs from July 9th to August 3rd. E pic Carnival's Sheyenne Persood was a model at the presser - sweirsweir Facing the media were six speakers sitting at a long table, ready to talk about all aspects of the festival.   So what was said? The message from the experts was right to the ...