Masqueraders want officials to give nod to this year’s Kadooment festivities

A proposal has been submitted for the hosting of Kadooment Day festivities, as entertainment players seek a swift end to stringent COVID-19 restrictions, including a midnight to 5 a.m. curfew.

Stakeholders are contending that the hosting of mass gatherings for recent election campaigns and T20 Internationals should provide some insight on the way forward.

But they are warning that time is quickly running out for a final decision to be made on the ‘sweetest summer festival’, which traditionally reaches its climax at the start of August.

President of the Barbados Association of Masqueraders (BAM), Anthony Layne, on Monday told Barbados TODAY that three options have been presented to the National Cultural Foundation (NCF) for the festival.

The first is the traditional Kadooment Day route from the National Stadium to the Spring Garden Highway. However with the pandemic in mind, proposals have also been made for the hosting of an exclusive ‘safe zone’ jump up on the ABC Highway and/or most conservatively at an enclosed venue like the Bushy Park Raceway.

“The option that seems most likely to work is having it in an enclosed environment where everybody would have to be tested to enter,” said Lane.

The BAM president acknowledged that it would be challenging for band leaders to plan for August as preparations usually begin well before February. But for the most part, BAM’s members, representing the vast majority of Kadooment bands, are willing to try.

“So basically we are just waiting to see how things will go or what will be the word from the NCF or government through the NCF.

“We are waiting to see what is going to happen, because we need to know like now, because it’s kind of late, but if we were given the go ahead right now, we can still get something done for the first Monday in August. However,  we wouldn’t want it to run or to have to wait until down in March or April to get the go ahead on whether it will happen or not.”

In each instance, participants will be required to be fully vaccinated and/or tested to participate and viewers would only be allowed if the event takes on the original route or along the ABC Highway.

For Kadooment on the ABC Highway, Lane envisions a specific section being cordoned off for revelry and others allocated for viewing the festivities.

He declared that whilst the recent English cricket tour of the West Indies could not be a blueprint for Crop Over festivities, the activities provided a glimpse into the possibilities.

“Looking at what happened over the last three to four weeks, I think that it can happen. You would still have all the protocols in place like sanitizing, testing people and so on because as you’re aware, Kadooment Day is a little different to a [political] meeting,” said Layne.

“When it comes to Kadooment Day and you’re in a band, it’s about jamming on the day and persons very close to one another. So it’s a little different. When you take into account the alcohol, the drinks, and then there’s music and with the music, you gyrate and you’re up under each other,” he acknowledged.

Over the weekend, St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves announced that Vincy Mas would be held this year.

Barbados is currently under a midnight to 5 a.m. curfew and entertainment events are restricted to 500 patrons or less.

Meanwhile, president of the Entertainers Association of Barbados, Rudy Maloney expressed confidence that much like other countries across the globe, restrictions will be gradually removed.

“I think what is good for the goose should be good for the gander,” said Maloney.

“We will always say that safety is first and we will always go by what the medical people tell us. But we are seeing it happening all around, so I believe that at some stage, we need to get a little more freedom in the entertainment industry,” he added. kareemsmith@barbadostoday.bb