The 43rd annual Provincetown Carnival will run Saturday through Saturday, August 13 through August 20, with the theme “Monsters, Myths and Legends.” Billed as Provincetown’s largest summer festival, the carnival will include the highly anticipated carnival parade.
The week of activities, hosted by the Provincetown Business Guild, will include pool parties, drag parties, floats, cabaret-style shows, costume parties, and gallery walks and many other events. Although the carnival was staged in smaller versions in 2020 and 2021 due to pandemic concerns, this will be the first time in three years that the festival’s biggest attraction – the parade – returns.
The parade’s grand marshal will be Mx Justin Vivian Bond, a Tony Award-nominated singer-songwriter, author, performance artist and activist. Bond is also the headline talent, performing a show one night at the Provincetown Town Hall.
The spirit of the carnival is to bring people back to the festivities after past COVID-19 restrictions on size and attendance, giving them a chance to express themselves and have fun, according to organizers. “We are very excited to be back with a full carnival schedule that includes 17 events in total,” says Stephen Hengst, the guild’s executive director, noting that huge crowds are expected, including more than 150,000 visitors. in Provincetown on Thursday, August 18 for the parade. .
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“In previous years, we have seen the event grow exponentially and this is a good indication of what this season will look like. We expect a blast of a show this year,” says Trevor Pittinger, associate director of the guild.
“Monsters, Myths and Legends”
This year’s carnival theme of “Monsters, Myths and Legends” offers an opportunity for participants to delve into the world of pop culture, fantasy and fable as a way to express themselves, Hengst says. “People come to Provincetown to live their truest version of themselves, and we wanted to give them a theme they can really embrace and prepare for,” he says. “We anticipate spectacular costumes this year.”
The theme is part of all the events, Pittinger says, noting “the Medusa pool party, the monster closing party, and for the cruise, we have the Kraken, which is mythic and monster-oriented. We’ve been super- creative with the elements and we expect that Provincetown, known as an arts enclave, will embrace the idea.”
The newest addition to the Carnival festivities this year it’s the carnival run and walk, the Feet Over Front Street 5k. Hengst says the society introduced that type of event in June of this year for Pride Week and decided to include them in the carnival. On Sunday morning, August 14, about 150 participants are expected to run and walk from the Harbor Hotel to the other end of Commercial Street, he says.
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Other events this year include a Let’s Get Kraken Carnival Cruise at 3.15pm on Sunday, August 14; The Myth of the Medusa Carnival Pool Party at the Brass Key Inn at 1pm on Monday, August 15; Provincetown Follies (“The Gayest Show and Party in Town”) at the Crown & Anchor at 10 p.m., Tuesday, August 16; Legend of the Pied Piper – Girls Pop-Up Party, featuring Provincetown’s famous lesbian bar at the Provincetown Brewing Company at 4 p.m., Wednesday, August 17; and the Monster Mashup Carnival closing party at Crown & Anchor at 10 p.m., Friday, August 19.
A new pool party this year: “SLURP – Paige Turner’s Tawdry Pool Party with DJ James Cerne.” Drag queen Paige Turner will host what is billed as New York City’s longest-running drag show at noon on Friday, August 19 at the Boatslip.
Grand Marshal of the parade
According to organizers, the role of a parade Grand Marshal and Carnival Grand Marshal in general is to put a face in front of the community to celebrate someone who has made a huge contribution to queer culture and the LGBTQ+ communities. Bond embodies that exact spirit for Provincetown and other communities, they say.
“Justin Vivian Bond has been a very outspoken advocate for transgender rights for generations,” says Hengst. “They bring together several elements of Provincetown, we’re excited to use the carnival festivities to grow them and celebrate their accomplishments.”
Bond has been at the forefront of trans visibility and activism since the early 1990s. Other performances and awards they have received include an Obie, a Bessie, a Tony nomination, an Ethyl Eichelberger Award, The Peter Reed Foundation Grant, The Foundation for Contemporary Art Grant for Artists and The Art Matters Grant.
“I want to call myself ‘The Great Marsha,’ as I want to pay tribute to Marsha Johnson, who was an outstanding figure in the gay rights movement,” Bond said. “I think it’s a great honor. I look forward to celebrating and being among an enthusiastic group of people.”
Mx Justin Vivian Bond’s show, “Oh Mary, It’s Carnival Week!” will take place at 8:30pm on Wednesday, August 17 at Town Hall, 260 Commercial St. They have been touring the show all over the country, including New York City, San Francisco and London.
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“I turned 59 this year and I’m having a hard time remembering everyone’s names; instead of calling them ‘hun’ or ‘sugar,’ I decided to call them all ‘Mary,'” Bond joked. “All the songs are either about or about someone named Mary.”
Bond says they are excited about the subject. In their own words: “Monsters, myths and legends – I think the theme is great, I’m all those things!”
The poster for Carnival is a big deal every year, organizers say, and this year Eric Lesh, a portrait and figurative artist and LGBTQ rights advocate, is the featured artist.
Carnival Headquarters will be open daily through Saturday, August 13 at the Firehouse, 256 Commercial St.
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The cost of individual carnival tickets varies for each event and are available in advance and at the door (based on availability). The VIP package, which includes seven special events in one ticket, costs $140.
For the complete Carnival schedule, an event guide and to purchase tickets: https://ptown.org/calendars/carnival/.
