With many still watching their spending, carnival giant TRIBE is making sure everyone has access to their band’s launch celebrations.
Called SUNSETWKN, the bundle is offering two free options to customers.
The first is Friday, July 22. It starts at 19:00 on Ana Street at Ariapita Avenue and elements of the presentation will unfold at different stops along the Avenue.
Street Theater Spectators will be treated to a theatrical depiction and Broadway-style choreography of the many cultural elements of Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival.
Dean Ackin, CEO of TRIBE, explained, “The goal of the Ariapita Street Theater is really to create that opportunity for the whole community to come together and celebrate our Carnival. We saw the response to Lavway, the feature film released in February last year – called our love letter to Carnival – there was a real sense of pride, joy and love for our culture when we saw the reaction to that film. We want to turn it now into an in-person experience, something you can bring your family to and enjoy. It’s also an opportunity for our creative community to come together for the first time in a long time and do what they do best – entertain and bring joy to people through their performance.”
Then, early risers the following morning (Saturday, July 23) will also be treated to the sweat of the sun; a free fitness party experience at Hasely Crawford Training Grounds. Exercise and carnival have always been inextricably linked, but now, more than ever, health and wellness are a top priority.
The SUNsweat concept incorporates elements of our traditional music and dance into a fitness routine, making it an accessible and enjoyable workout for participants of all ages.
Of course, ticketed events are also crowd pleasers.
The Festival of Bands will take place on Saturday night where TRIBE will officially unveil the costumes of all six bands under its umbrella – TRIBE, Bliss, The Lost Tribe, Harts, Rogue and Pure – at The Launch at the Jean Pierre Complex.
The layout and presentation of the event promises to be a significant departure from the format of previous years, as Family of Bands has reinvented its approach to the band launch experience for customers.
Sunday’s event is the Las Jam Carnival – a tribal celebration that many will recognize as the Band Family’s farewell to Carnival, where costumed masqueraders gather at Hasely Crawford Stadium for one last pump-up on the Sunday after Carnival.
This time, however, Las Jam Carnival will mark the end of SUNSETWKN but will mark the beginning of the journey to Carnival 2023 and the triumphant return of Trinidad & Tobago to the Greatest Show on Earth.
Commenting on the decision to have a three-day launch instead of the conventional one-off event, Ackin said: “We haven’t held a group launch since 2019. We knew this year we had to do something new, fresh and different. A multi-day event gives us the opportunity to create a variety of experiences that can appeal to different audiences. We know playing mas may not be accessible to everyone, but this weekend will allow people to enjoy all the elements of the festival – the music, the dance, the theatre, the costumes, the parties. Ultimately, we also hope that SUNSETWKN can become a blueprint for an alternative tourism product – a destination weekend that visitors will want to fly to experience.”
Ackin expects 2023 to be a good year for the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival.
“We’ve had an unprecedented and overwhelming response to our advance booking for Carnival 2023. Carnival is an integral part of our psyche and who we are as a people, and it’s been two years since we’ve been able to fully experience it. People need it. Carnival has always been a massive stress reliever, and we’ve had over two years of extreme stress and almost no form of release. We are now seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and 2023 will be a great celebration of that.”
Tickets for SUNSETWKN Saturday and Sunday are on sale and available at TRIBE Mas Camp on Rosalino Street in Woodbrook and online at Island eTickets.
Early bird tickets for The Launch and Las Jam Carnival are $400 each while combo tickets are available for $750.
For more details visit the SUNSETWKN Instagram page.
