Preparations are in full swing for the 2024 Cape Town Carnival, a highlight on the summer calendar, happening in March this year.
Cape Town, South Africa (19 February 2024) – The sweetest, kiffest, and most LEKKER celebration Cape Town has ever seen is only a month away! It’s Carnival!
As part of the build-up, designers, artists, performers, and artisans welcomed media, guests and sponsors to the wonder of the Cape Town Carnival Workshop, giving them a taste of the magic that will dazzle fans, families and friends on Saturday the 16th of March.
Come and see the spectacular inspirational new offerings that the team has spent the past year conceptualising and perfecting. Among these are the stunning Technicolour Savannah, Umkhuseli – the Ant – and the colourful, fun Schweet float. A crowd favourite float, the 7m Dream Doll, has been reimagined as the Zwakala float and is sure to wow the audience.
Greeting guests at the workshop, Cape Town Carnival Board Chair Prof Rachel Jafta emphasised how the event wasn’t just about spectacle, but also created ongoing work opportunities:
“From one float in 2010, to the variety you see in the workshop today, the Cape Town Carnival has come a long way. There are many layers to the event and a huge amount of work that goes into it and today we’ve pulled back the curtain so you can take a peek behind the scenes.”
While the floats are always mind-blowingly beautiful, each outfit worn by the performers is its own work of art – lovingly, painstakingly designed, manufactured and altered to perfection by the dedicated team in the costume department.
Seamstress “Aunty” Jenette Lawrence described how the environment of creativity made for an inspiring workspace:
“My journey started in a factory when I was 15. I moved on to the movie industry and then more recently to the Cape Town Carnival costume department. I enjoy every bit of working here. I love seeing how the floats and the costumes all come together. Everyone who works here does it with love.”
For Lebohang Litsili, working in the fabrication department has given him a chance to develop new skills:
“I joined the Cape Town Carnival in 2012 and never looked back. Once the structure of the float has been created by the construction department it comes here, and we get to bring the design to life, which I really enjoy.
Skills transfer is a fundamental element of the Cape Town Carnival’s mandate, and no one epitomises this more than Maluva Gandiwa, the lead of the Cape Town Carnival’s construction department.
Goniwe started at the Cape Town Carnival as a cleaner in 2012, and now runs his own steel fabrication business in addition to his carnival duties.
“My team is now the biggest that it ever has been,” he said. “I learned my skills from here, and because my life was changed, I now want to change other lives. So I’ve also started teaching school kids welding skills and my main goal is to open up a welding school.”
With exactly one month to go ‘til Carnival fever sweeps Cape Town, it’s time for people to start making their plans and securing their spots for the best viewing opportunities. If you’re still not convinced on why you should be there, Cape Town Carnival Trustee and international celebrity Jo-Ann Strauss says,
“It’s just lekker. It’s such a great theme this year and we have to celebrate that which makes us uniquely Capetonian, so let’s just have fun. There’s enough sadness in the world and the Cape Town Carnival is such a wonderful chance for us to all unite, be together and realise the potential of the city’s creativity.”
To give a behind-the-scenes look at the work that goes into the creative process, Cape Town Carnival is running a social media campaign called #followyourheART that focuses on 13 of the participating community groups. The campaign highlights their passion and dedication and illustrates what a life-changing experience it can be to participate in the event.
Entry to the event is free but tickets are available for seats in strategically placed stands along the parade route. Tickets for Cape Town Carnival are on sale on Quicket. For more information see capetowncarnival.com.
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