NewzWith one of the biggest parties of the summer just around the corner, Priscilla Mobin puts the final touches on one of the more elaborate pieces she’s designed for the Toronto Caribbean Carnival Grand Parade. “I decided to go with an underwater, mermaid type of theme for this section here. It’s coral, there’s themes of shells and essences of a beautiful woman coming out of the sea dripping in water,” she explains.
Mobin’s section is one of nearly a dozen in Carnival Nationz, one of the more prominent masquerade bands – or mas bands – in Toronto. At their headquarters in Scarborough, hundreds of bags sit ready to be picked up by customers, some of whom have waited months to get them. It’s a lot of time, especially coming in on the last month or so when you get the supplies in from suppliers and stuff, and you start to put together the costumes,” says band leader Bryce Aguiton.
“But it’s worth it when you see that masquerader walk out with a smile on their face and they’re looking forward to the road.” Carnival Nationz’s theme this year is a familiar one, having to do with a major soccer event that just ended. “We did it in 2006 when Trinidad qualified for the World Cup for the first time. So this is our version two because it came home to Canada,” said Aguiton.
The band says there are nearly 1,000 masqueraders in their group alone this year, split up into different sections representing different countries. Getting people together, having fun, different cultures, different backgrounds,” added Aguiton. The weekend kicks off with the King and Queen showcase on Thursday evening.
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