Carifest Calgary 2011

The Carifest celebrations for 2011
will take place from June 4th to 11th!

The Sunshine Festival will
be held at Shaw Millennium Park.
June 11th 2011 (noon - 7pm)

 

Carifest 2011 Welcomes " CRAZY"

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the city's Caribbean Festival, Soca legend, "Crazy" will be performing.
The "Loveable Lunatic of Soca" is one of the most commercially successful artists on the international soca music scene. In the biz long before most of today's party-goers were even born, Crazy has constantly been putting out hits in his native T&T, pioneered parang soca and played a leading role in promoting chutney music. "Crazy" will be featured at the Sunshine Festival along with 6 other Caribbean bands this year all performing for FREE! He will also be one of the guest judges of the Showcase, and holding court at the Afterparty.

Carifest Showcase Submissions - Deadline May 23rd. 2011

Its that time again! Were giving away thousands of dollars in cash and prizes for the 2nd annual Carifest Showcase. The Showcase Monarch contest is open to all singers performing any and all traditional Caribbean Music genres, eg. Reggae, Calypso, Soca, Zouk, etc. Songs can be original compositions or covers of other artist's work.  If more than one contestant requests to perform the same cover song, the submission that was received first will take precedent.

For the singers:
Judging Criteria: Total 100pts/judge/song

1. Stage Presence – 20pts
2. Vocal Ability – 30pts
3. Melody - 20pts
4. Crowd Response - 30pts

Contestants must submit two (2) songs


Carnival costumes being judged on the night for the Carifest King and Queen will have a size restriction on the costumes. Costumes MUST BE NO LARGER than 7'x7' at rest. (Costumes can be larger once assembled backstage.)  The competitions are open to all ages.  Costumes too large to be entered in the Showcase will be judged in the parade along with their respective bands for Band of the year.

DOWNLOAD SINGER'S APPLICATION FORM



Male and Female costume criteria:

1 Poise / Portrayal (20 points)
2 Creativity / Visual Impact (Design & Colors) (30 points)
3 Mobility / Agility (25 points)
4 Originality (Theme) (25 points)


Totaling 100 points





DOWNLOAD COSTUME APPLICATION

Join us and make your claim for best individual for 2011!
Deadline for Registration is: MAY 23rd 2011
Singers, Submit mp3s and/or Youtube links to showcase@carifestcalgary.com or call 403-774-1300 for further details.  Costumes, please contact us (as above) to detail the dimensions and theme of your entry.

All prizing details will be released once confirmed.  We hope to match or increase the winnings from last year's $1000 first prize and $500 second prize for all categories.  The competition will be held at Theatre Junction GRAND. (608 1 St SW, Calgary AB) The show starts at 7:00pm, Friday Jun 10th 2011.

Good luck to all.

Carifest 2011 Official Artwork!

Congratulations to the 2011 winner for the Carifest Poster competition, Kalina Whyte who walks away with the $500 prize. Her submission will be incorporated into marketing materials for the 2011 festival season.

Carifest 2011 Poster Competition

Here are the finalists for the Carifest 2011 Poster Competition:

2011 Poster Design for $500

Carifest Calgary is proud to introduce the 2011 poster competition. Do you, or someone you know under the age of 25, have an artistic side? Submit your design ideas for Carifest 2011 and your vision could be the official design for the upcoming festival! The winning entry will be awarded $500 and have their work featured on all Carifest 2011 marketing material!

Download Rules Here

Alison Hinds made Carifest 2010 fantastic!

Alison Hinds, joined by Grenada's "Tallpree", T&T's Nadia Batson and "Patch" rounded out a fantastic day of outdoor festivities at Shaw Millennium Park on Saturday June 12th for Carifest 2010.  Thousands of patrons enjoyed the fun filled day of food, music and a vibrant Sunshine Market.  More pictures available here.

Alison Hinds, Carifest 2010

Carifest 2010 welcomed Barbados Soca singing sensation Alison Hinds to Shaw Millennium Park's Sunshine Festival on Saturday June 12th. She was on the main stage along with international acts Nadia Batson, Talpree, Patch, and local talent for the year's festival. Performances during the day were FREE as a teaser for the actual show at the Chinese Cultural Centre later that evening.

Carifest 2010 performers

Here were the scheduled performance times for the Sunshine Festival 2010

Noon - Steel Band (Organettes)
12:30 - Carifest Dancers
1:10pm - Infiniti
1:50pm - Candice Ramsumair (dance)
2:00pm - Steel Band (Organettes)
2:20pm - Caribbees
3:00pm - Calgary Samba
3:40pm - Explosion
4:00pm - Calgary Samba
4:30pm - Ayanna Lee-Rivers (Limbo) -
4:40pm - Maximum Force
5:10pm - Shalli, Patch, Nadia Batson, Tallpree, Allison Hinds
6:30pm - Closing Announcements
7:00pm - Festival wrap up

Showcase Winners

Congratulations to the winners of the first annual Carifest Showcase, Friday June 11th 2010. Performing to a packed house, the top 3 singers were:
3) Aisha Mendes
2) Karella "Diamond" Cummings
and new Showcase Monarch Lynn Olagundoye who took home the trophy and $1000.00



In the costume category, the big winners were:

2nd place - Stephanie's portrayal of the "Sea Nymph" from Ivan Baharally and Friends.






1st place - "Sabby" from Sykotik Mas' 2010 offering "Emotionz"

Pursuit Art Gallery - Documentary Screening

Breathless in Trinidad & Tobago v1.5 (Video Documentary)
A video documentary that empowers youth through the arts by using faith, love and hope.

Celebrate culture, hope and diversity during Carifest with a video documentary short from Trinidad and Calgary that feature how the arts can change peoples lives!  The full documentary is now featured below:


Breathless in Trinidad & Tobago from Vincent T Joachim on Vimeo.

The Pursuit Art Gallery traveled to Gonzales, Trinidad and setup a free photography program with over 20 marginalized youth in 2008 and 2009. This workshop documented the Carnival, the youth, their community and culture through hope and empowerment. Also view additional video clips created by youth in Calgary from Holy Cross School and St. Mark’s Church in a program called Trinity Art. Presented in partnership with the Calgary Public Library and the Pursuit Art Gallery.

On June 8th, 2010, a free viewing of the video documentary short, “Breathless in Trinidad & Tobago,” was shown at the Central Public Library at the John Dutton Theatre located on 616 Macleod Trail SE.

The Pursuit Art gallery empowers youth through the arts using faith, love and hope. The organization has been offering art workshops since 2007 and became a non-profit organization in Jan 2010. The Pursuit has created many youth workshops and has teamed up with the City of Calgary, Red Cross, Calgary Learning Village Collaborative, the Bridge Foundation for Youth and Tallman Foundation just to name a few. Workshops are offered in Canada and in Trinidad & Tobago. The main art mediums the Pursuit offers are photography, video, popular theatre and writing.

For more information, please visit http://www.thepursuit.ca or call/email Vincent T Joachim at (403) 399-2471 / info@thepursuit.ca or Karina Ramdath at (403) 714-7824.

Carifest Showcase Friday!

Limited tickets are still available for Friday's showcase. For your convenience all remaining tickets are available online for $25 (surcharge included) or at the GRAND box office.


Get your tickets now for this year's Showcase. (charge or by phone)




The competition will be held at Theatre Junction GRAND. (608 1 St SW, Calgary AB) The show starts at 8:00pm, Friday Jun 11th 2010.

Follow Carifest on Twitter

Stay up to date with performance dates and event times by following Carifest on twitter.  www.twitter.com/thecarifest

2K10 Ultimate Jump-Up

After all the FREE festivities at Shaw Millennium Park on Saturday, don't forget to get your tickets for the hottest afterparty!

XQUISITE HAIR DESIGN (403)8061212,
FROM THE ROOTS (403)2302103,
ISLAND BEAT (BOTH LOCATIONS) (403)2735683/5683766,
BLUE LAGOON RESTURANT (403)2486504

Festival News

Shaw TV interview about Carifest 2010

Parade Route

The Parade starts Saturday morning at Olympic Plaza, 11:00am.  We proceed up 8th Avenue SW to the Sunshine Festival Grounds (Shaw Millennium Park)

Shaw Millennium Park

Carifest Showcase

Were giving away over $3000 in cash and prizes for the first annual Carifest Showcase. This contest is open to all Caribbean singers performing any and all traditional Caribbean Music genres, eg. Reggae, Calypso, Soca, Zouk, etc.

Judging Criteria: Total 100pts/judge/song

1. Stage Presence – 20pts
2. Vocal Ability – 30pts
3. Melody - 20pts
4. Crowd Response - 30pts

Contestants must perform two (2) songs

First Place: $1000
Second Place: $500

Carnival constumes will also be judged on the night. Again, open to all ages with a size restriction on the costumes. Costumes MUST BE NO LARGER than 7'x7' .

Male and Female costume criteria:

1 Poise / Portrayal (20 points)
2 Creativity / Visual Impact (Design & Colors) (30 points)
3 Mobility / Agility (25 points)
4 Originality (Theme) (25 points)


Totaling 100 points
1st Prize $1000
2nd Prize $500


Join us and make your claim for best individual and band of the year for 2010!
Deadline for Registration is: MAY 15th 2010
Submit mp3s and/or Youtube links to showcase@carifestcalgary.com or call 403-774-1300 for further details.

The competition will be held at Theatre Junction GRAND. (608 1 St SW, Calgary AB) The show starts at 8:00pm, Friday Jun 11th 2010.

Shaw Millenium Park

Carifest 2011: Performers for this year still TBA


All performers please forward inquires to: perform@carifestcalgary.com

or call 403-774-1300


Take Note: The Friday Night Showcase is open to all singers for a chance to win cash and the title of Carifest Showcase Monarch.


__________________________________________________________

SAT. June 12th 2010

Caribbean Music and atmosphere for FREE all day! Here are more of the artists performing.

Nadia Batson



This T&T singer shot to fame in 2006 with her Zouk-inspired hit "One Island", but this sultry songstress spent many years behind the scene penning numerous chart-topping singles for other Soca artist such as Michelle Sylvester and Terry Seales, and providing her much sought-after background vocals to many more.  She is now a sought after headliner and will bring her talents to Calgary for the first time

Shalli

Shalli is a sweet combination of sass and sophistication. She developed her musical talents by idolizing such soulful greats as Luther Vandross and Chaka Khan and today has developed her own unique style: passionate, infectious, soulful, real and full of life.

Shalli began honing her musical talents as early as age five in her church and school choirs. Born of Jamaican and Dominican descent, Shalli was destined to travel a musical path as her father - a musician for over 30 years - helped her to never forget her rhythm-rich heritage.
Listen to her music here.



Maximum Force
You just have to experience this locally based band that play Reggae in all styles from Rock Steady to Dance Hall and Ska. They mostly deliver original compositions but also spice things up with crowd favorites. Maximum Force delivers the true spirit of the music as band members get the crowd involved throughout their performance.

Maximum Force have shared the stage with such Artists as Capleton, Morgan Heritage, Bennie Man, Road Hammer, System of a Down, Lucky Dubay, Half Pint, Tony Curtis and many more. Listen Here





Explosion Band is one of the most versatile and dynamic bands in Calgary. They provide a diverse repertoire of high energy dance songs from pop and Caribbean styles. For 2010, Explosion Band will deliver the hottest Soca from the Islands directly to Calgary's festival audience.






T and T Organettes
It wouldn't be a true Caribbean Festival without the sounds of Steel Pan in the air. The "Organettes" have been gracing Carifest for years and have also made a name for themselves performing annually in Calgary's world famous Stampede parade. Come experience the wonderful sounds that this band provides at Carifest 2010.





Calgary Samba
The Calgary School of Samba, founded in 2001 by Malcolm Lim and Barbara Oliveira-Lim, is a funky Brazilian-inspired drum and dance ensemble. The Bateria, or percussion ensemble, performs on traditional Samba percussion instruments including surdos, caixas, repiniques, tamborims, chocalhos, cuicas, and pandeiros. The Passistas, or dancers, perform energetic choreographies that match the beat of the drums. Barbara sings on top of the irresistible beat and draws elements from a range of Afro-Brazilian, Rap, and Reggae songs. Don't miss them at this year's Sunshine Festival June 12th.

Limbo and Socacize®
Carifest welcomes Canada's “Limbo Dancer Extraordinaire”. Ayanna Lee-Rivers started “Socacize®" to promote a fun way to exercise with a combination of dance moves, weight and strength training. She works closely with various fitness centres corporate companies, recreation centres, schools, and dance companies. Ayanna will be bringing her limbo to the park on June 12th and will be conducting a Socacize® instructor class in Calgary June 13th 2010.
(Results Fitness Inc. 925 1st Ave. NE 8:30-6pm)

Indian Dance
Candice Ramsumir is an accomplished Indian dancer who has performed throughout Canada and the world. Caribbana in Toronto, Folk Fest in Saskatoon, Indiafest, and many other shows in Calgary. She has been performing for the past 20years and is originally from Trinidad where she led the dance group, Durga Shakti before migrating to Canada. With her dance group, she has travelled the Caribbean (Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Martinique, Guyana just to name a few) and was also a member of Trinidad's national contingent in Germany for the Fifa Word Cup 2006.






All performers please forward inquires to: perform@carifestcalgary.com or call 403-774-1300

Get involved in Carifest 2010

Attention, CARIBBEAN VENDORS, COSTUME BANDS, AND SINGERS:

The Caribbean Community Council of Calgary is proud to announce the dates and our plans for the 2010 festival season. These include added events, incentives and prizing for Carifest!


After a fantastic turnout for last year's Sunshine Festival on June 13th we hope to grow on the success of the event with the re-addition of some previously notable events. There has been a healthy injection of funds into the organization over the last year which will allow for some exciting expansion of the festival.

2010's CARIFEST will start on June 5th with the CARIBBEAN GOSPEL CONCERT. The concert will be helmed by esteemed members of the National Black Coalition of Canada (Calgary) who put on Gospel events throughout the city annually. This event has proven to draw well over 1000 patrons in the past and this year we hope to exceed that number.

On Friday June 11th , CARIFEST will expand to include the FRIDAY NIGHT GALA. This event is planned as Calgary's re-introduction to “MAS”. Individual Male and Female Carnival costumes will compete for cash and prizes on the night as well as a Caribbean Music competition to fill out an over 2hr evening event.

This will all lead into Saturday June 12th 2010 which will start the morning with The CARIFEST PARADE down Stephen Avenue, starting at OLYMPIC PLAZA at 11:00am and ending at the Festival grounds, SHAW MILLENNIUM PARK. Carnival bands from all over Canada are encouraged to partake, as this year the competition will be for thousands of dollars in cash, prizes and trophies. Substantial prizing returns for best band, and individual prizes for those who enter costumes in the Friday night show.

The entire Saturday will of course be fun filled as the sights and sounds of the Caribbean fill Calgary's Downtown. With the resounding success of last year, Carifest will expand the offerings on the grounds to more vendors, more entertainment and a larger capacity beer garden. The event will once again be FREE to the public and run all the way until 7pm.

The Council will continue its annual commitment to helping from within the community as a significant portion of proceeds from events will be donated to the Haitian relief effort

To stay informed please check out: www.carifestcalgary.com or send an email to admin@carifestcalgary.com.

We look forward to you getting involved in Calgary's re-energized CARIFEST for 2010 and expanding the culture to the masses!


Regards,
Carifest President
Drew Allum