‘Funding needed’ to restore Kings and Queens to Crop Over spectacle

Restoring the iconic Kings and Queens of the Bands to Crop Over will depend heavily on increased financial support, according to a senior masquerader, as mas’ industry players seek to revive one of the festival’s most visually striking traditions.

At last week’s launch of the Flow 5G Grand Kadooment powered by TV8, vice-president of the Barbados Association of Masqueraders (BAM), Anthony Layne welcomed the return of Cohobblopot but cautioned that restoring the spectacle of the intricate costumes to its former glory would require significant investment.

The high cost of designing and constructing elaborate King and Queen costumes remains one of the biggest challenges facing bandleaders and designers, particularly newcomers to the industry, said Layne. 

“Another thing to [look at] would be prize money and so on because it’s still got to make sense…it has to add up at the end of the day,” he said.

He argued that inadequate financial returns were among the factors that contributed to the decline of the traditional part of the festival in previous years.

“We used to spend more money to produce and design a king and queen than you used to get in prize money. I think that is what ran away most of the designers and band leaders from bringing a king and queen for Cohobblopot. The finance has to be there.”

Layne stressed that the return of Cohobblopot would not be complete without the elaborate costumes that once captivated audiences and served as centrepieces of the festival.

“If Cohobblopot is going to come back really and truly as it was, King and Queens and the band will have to be a part of it…it would not be the same Cohobblopot if it’s not a part of it.”

He acknowledged that reviving the tradition will take time, noting that large-scale costumes require months of planning, design and construction.

“I wouldn’t expect that to happen this year. I would expect that to happen next year. We need to give the designers time to put their creative mind to work and to start to build that type of costume, because those are elaborate costumes.”

Layne also welcomed recent efforts to train a new generation of costume makers through the Wire Sculpting for Masquerade Workshop, which was hosted by the Pinelands Creative Workshop in collaboration with the National Cultural Foundation, Caribbean Yard Campus and the Maria Holder Trust.

“The workshop that they have is good because that helps to give the younger people some knowledge about wire binding and so on,” he said.

Layne revealed that discussions about bringing in wire-bending experts had been taking place for several years and were delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic:

“We are happy that it’s finally coming, but it needs to be right. It needs to come the correct way so that it will capture the imagination of the people and the crowds will be there,” he said, recalling the event’s popularity in its heyday.

“I know Cohobblopot used to be burst, as the young people would say.”

(SB)