Snoek and ele floats on Fan Walk
THE CAPE TOWN CARNIVAL on Saturday at Green Point Fan Walk celebrates Cape Town and its glamorous African spirit. MARIE
CLAIRE DE VILLIERS goes behind the scenes to check out the preparation for one of the most popular and anticipated free outdoor events. PREPARATIONS are in full swing for a spectacular procession of this year’s ‘elemental’ themed Cape
Town Carnival. Over 20 themed floats and puppets, 2000 performers, musicians and dancers from 46 community performance groups will stage the sixth annual show, which has evolved into a true, signature event. A free party, the Cape Town Car
nival is managed by a non-profit trust that seeks to stage a worldclass fiesta, transfer skills and stimulate the local economy. The theme of Cape Town’s biggest street party is Elemental: Celebrating Fire, Water, Air and Earth.
Tens of thousands of spectators will be treated to an electrifying parade including speciality acts, musicians, performers and dancers representing communities across the Cape. The city will also be invaded by a 10-metre snoek, as magic is set to sweep through its streets on the night. And if the giant snoek doesn’t float your boat, then maybe the forest elephant will.
The giant elephant float, created from recycled materials, aims to raise awareness of the vulnerability of our biodiversity. Creative director, Brad Baard, says: “African elephants are the world’s largest terrestrial animals, but their magnificence doesn’t protect them from poaching and habitat loss, and we wanted to raise awareness of the sensitivity of, and interdependence, with the natural environment.
“Our forest elephant float depicts a copse of trees representing the cool green forest, revealing a life size elephant covered in handmade ‘leaves’, representing the interconnectedness of the elephant and the forest. Three puppeteers will be inside the structure to operate it on the night. Together, they will create a spectacular moving display as the float passes along the 1.2km Fan Walk,” says Baard.
Of the 45 people employed parttime at the Maitland float building workshop, 21 were provided by the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) – a government initiative that aims to reduce poverty by giving unemployed people access to temporary work. To this end, EPWP workers from Khayelitsha, Ocean View, Philippi and other areas are learning how to construct using steel, wood, plastic and natural materials as well as to sculpt, craft, fabricate, puppeteer, paint and spray paint. While Carni
val teams design and build floats, the organisation also actively encourages external designers and builders from across the Western Cape to bring proposals and themed artworks to the parade.
In False Bay, a giant snoek puppet is being built to form part of the
Water section of the procession. The 10-metre-long fish will be operated by eight people in the style of a Chinese dragon. “Snoek is central to our culture and food chain, especially on the Southern Cape coast,” says Baard. “On the Fan Walk, this dynamic puppet will help raise awareness of our sensitive relationship with the ocean and her creatures. After the parade it will be used in communities across the south Peninsula to educate about our natural and cultural heritage. On Carnival night, it will be manned by members of the Kalk Bay community.”
“Carnival is designed to be a large-scale, inclusive event for the community, by the community, and we are delighted that six of the 20 major parade elements will be built by external teams. Similarly, dancing and music are incorporated into every element of the event and 46 performance groups will use
Carnival 2015 as a fun way to engage and inspire local youth, and transfer dance and choreography skills,” says Shelley Finch, marketing, media, sponsorship director.
According to Finch, while many groups and individuals perform in their own costumes, about 1300 outfits were also sewn for the event. “As with the float building, special attention is given to the use of recycled materials and skills transfer with more people from the EPWP employed part-time to assist in pattern making, sewing, glittering.”.
On Carnival day, visitors will have the freedom of the city streets from 4pm as they join family and friends to enjoy the variety of food, crafts and special kids’ activities, including acrobats and buskers, on offer. The streets will be closed for final preparations at 6pm, giving Carnival-goers enough time to find the perfect viewing spot or make their way to one of the many restaurants along the Fan Walk before the magic begins at 7pm with an explosion of pyrotechnics. Restaurants and cafés all along the route will be open and there will be seating stands along the Fan Walk for those interested in being just inches of the performers.
The official After Party is set to take place at the Green Point Stadium Forecourt from 9pm until midnight, boasting Beatenberg, Riky Rick and Cassper Nyovest. Eager party-goers can follow the last float and join the thumping after party until midnight. Entry is free and no under 18’s will be allowed. Party-goers will also stand a chance of winning a car.
Getting to the Carnival with public transport will be easy as additional MyCiti and Park & Ride facilities will be in operation and Metrorail will offer one extra night train on each of these lines: CT to Retreat; CT to Simons Town; CT to Kraaifontein; CT to Kapteinsklip and CT to Nonkqubela.
Whether you want to dance the night away or watch all the madness calmly from a restaurant, this world of elements is a genesis of creation and beauty you don’t want to miss.