Move over Mas Men

THIS YEAR FIVE CAMPS ARE RUN ORGANIZED AND RUN BY WOMEN

The winds of change are blowing through the Toronto Mas Bands Association (TMBA). The association that actually recruits and trains the 17,000 or so people who perform in the Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival (Caribana) have set up their Mas Camps and begun to beat the drums for this year's festival. There are 16 Mas Camps in Toronto this year, 30% that are being run by a woman (five camps). Last year only 2 of the 16 camps were controlled by females.

For the past two weeks I have been escorting journalist William Doyle Marshall around the city to visit the Mas Camps. Four of the camps - 1 in Scarborough and 3 in Etobicoke are where the groundbreaking camps are located this year.

Pictured above are four of the five Mas Women.

Top Left: Narissa Ali has set up her Renaissance Mas Productions camp in a small warehouse on Howdon Avenue (back of the building). Her theme? Time after Time. When we visited her camp she was preparing for an upcoming Internet broadcast with a Trinidad based company.
Top Right: Whitney Doldron took over Mas Players International from her father Courtney, two years ago. This year she has a very large, modern camp in Etobicoke adjacent to Highway 427 (beside a banquet hall). William Doyle Marshall is shown above taking her picture. The theme this year is Fairytale Fantasies.
Bottom Right: Thea Jackson is expecting at least 1,000 men and women to join her Tru DYNASTY camp this year. She has a big space in Etobicoke - 246 Brockport Drive - bring you GPS!
Bottom Left: Kathleen Hughes believes that running a Mas Camp is a family affair. When we visited her Renaissance Mas Productions in Etobicoke, she had her father (and former Mas Man), her aunts, nieces and children making costumes for this year's festival. The camp is located at 175 The Westway (The Westway & Islington) in a city community centre next to an outdoor tennis court. There is a lot of free parking!
NOT VISITED YET: Calypso singer Susan Grogan (Susan G)has set up her new Spirits of the Caribbean Mas Camp at 1720 Midland Avenue, Unit 15. Doyle and I will visit that camp this week.

Scotiabank Caribana has been laid to rest - long live Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival (or is it Caribbean Carnival Toronto)

New Name: Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival Turns Up the Heat this Summer. Same Festival. Same Vibe!

pictures from the presser

On May 25th The Festival Management Committee announced a new name to the Festival that has captured an audience of more than 1.2 million people annually on the August long weekend: The Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival.
The Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival (STCC) will be back in July with the same line up of events featuring the Toronto Mas Band Association, the Organization of Calypso Performing Artistes and the Pannists, as well as an array of new programming leading up to the Parade on July 31st.
“This is the 44th year for the Parade, and all of the participants are preparing for another major turnout of attendees this summer,” said Denise Hererra Jackson, CEO of the FMC. “Rebranding ourselves as the Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival helps us resolve any ongoing trademark issues around the old Festival name, and allows us to move forward with an exciting program that will appeal to members of the community of all ages.”

“The Festival is an important summer celebration of diversity through arts and culture in Toronto and as such, is important to the roots of this city,” said Chris Alexander, CFO of the FMC. “The Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival will continue to grow and meet the needs of the attendees, while reinforcing its relationships with the Toronto community, its sponsors and other stakeholders.”
In addition to its commitment of title sponsor, Scotiabank and the FMC announced today they will donate a total of $2,500 in prize money to the Pan and Calypso competition, with the first place performers receiving a $1,500 prize, $1,000 to second place and $500 to third place.
“Scotiabank’s partnership with the FMC opened an exciting new chapter for the Bank – given our extensive presence in the Caribbean and the importance of this event to the City, our customers and our employees, this event is a natural fit for us,” said John Doig, Scotiabank Senior Vice-President, Toronto Region. “Today we have come together to reinforce our support for the Festival Management Committee – their decision to rename the Festival the Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival reflects our diverse and multicultural communities. We’re looking forward to a great festival!”
The STCC has released the official programme for the summer festivities today, and festival goers will see new additions, including a sports component featuring athletics of the Rugby League. Programme details can be found in the backgrounder and a new name and logo will appear in all marketing materials as well as on the revised interactive website, www.torontocaribbeancarnival.com.
About the Festival:

The Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival is an exciting three-week cultural explosion of Caribbean music, cuisine, revelry as well as visual and performing arts. Now in its 44th year, it has become a major international event and the largest cultural festival of its kind in North America. As Carnival is an international cultural phenomenon, the great metropolis of Toronto and its environs will come alive as the city explodes with the pulsating rhythms and melodies of Calypso, Soca, Reggae, Chutney, Steel Pan and Brass Bands. The Festival Management Committee is responsible for the managing and staging of North America’s largest outdoor festival.
Corporate sponsors of this year's festival include: Scotiabank, The Toronto Star, Sway Magazine, The Grid, CTV, CP24, The Federal Government of Canada, The Province of Ontario, The City of Toronto, Tourism Toronto, Mobilicity, The Greater Toronto Airports Authority, Ontario Place, Royal Ontario Museum, Ontario Science Centre, Toronto Public Libraries, Yorkgate Mall, Liberty Grand Entertainment Complex & Liberty Entertainment Group, The Caribbean Camera Newspaper, Toronto-Lime.Com, and GraceKennedy (Ontario) Inc.

The Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival Office is located at 263 Davenport Avenue, Lower Level; Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5R 1E9. Contact info: Tel: 416-391-5608; Fax: 416-391-5693; Email: Stephen@stephenweir.com CUTLINES:
Top: Press conference was held on an empty floor of the Scotiabank Tower in downtown Toronto. Over 55 journalists representing media outlets in 5 different countries, crowded onto the 59th floor to learn the new name of Scotiabank Caribana.
Second from top: The festivals CFO, Chris Alexander introduces the new name: Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival. Too bad the artwork on stage had a slightly different name that was instantly picked up by the press.
Second from bottom: I spent much of the press conference on the ground level of the Scotiabank Tower, registering guests near the elevators. I did get to watch the events unfold in the nearby coffee shop which ran a live feed on CP24. Scotiabank vice-president John Doig is on screen.
Botom: over a dozen mas camp models attended the presser and assisted with the photo sessions. Two models are from Tru Dynasty.
For more information about the programs and events, please visit the festival’s official website at www.torontocaribbeancarnival.com.