77.8 F
Cruz Bay
Thursday, March 28, 2024
HomeNewsLocal newsAdults Parade Celebrates V.I. History, Cultural Mix with Unique Entries

Adults Parade Celebrates V.I. History, Cultural Mix with Unique Entries

The V.I. Filipino Association celebrates unity with the local community during Saturday's Adult's Parade.
The V.I. Filipino Association celebrates unity with the local community during Saturday’s Adult’s Parade.

The rain this year might have caused some delays, but the more than 30 troupes that streamed down the Adult’s Parade route Saturday on St. Thomas kept the show going until well after 5 p.m., making it the longest event in years.

As residents started camping out around 10 a.m., when the parade was supposed to start, a light drizzle started falling over downtown. Residents were prepared with umbrellas and tents, and watched as the first two sets of the V.I, Police Department officers went up and down the road.

To give the crowd something to talk about, this year’s Adult’s Parade Grand Marshal Darrell Donovan, made his way up the road around 10:30 a.m., flanked by four members of the Infernos Carnival troupe, the organization that Donovan founded and which has grown into one of the biggest entries of the parade. .

Grace Randall portrays a medieval princess in her family’s Venice inspired Carnival troupe.
Grace Randall portrays a medieval princess in her family’s Venice inspired Carnival troupe.

“It’s an honor to be here, leading the parade,” Donovan said Saturday.” We have a great group, and it’s amazing to be honored for the work that we do. This year is no exception. We really wanted to do something special with Infernos this year with the anniversary of Carnival and the Centennial. You’re going to see Infernos coming up the road in “regal fete,” paying tribute to all of these celebrations and honoring what Carnival is all about, which is the celebration of our culture.”

The long white feathers and the headdresses of the Infernos were characteristic of many of the larger troops participating in the parade. Long-running names such as Real Mas, Hugga Bunch and others, stayed out until late Saturday night and, for another year, lit up the route with sequins, pink purple blue and black feathers and lively dance routines.

But also like every year, there were several unique entries. One of the first entries into the square Saturday was a three-man troop put together by the Randall family from Water Island.

Sebastien Majorettes gets some help Saturday from members of its Alumni Association.
Sebastien Majorettes gets some help Saturday from members of its Alumni Association.

Inspired by a trip to Venice, Italy, Alex Randall, dressed Saturday as Casanova, said the family drew inspiration from old Renaissance costumes and the fact that the country’s traditional masquerade was one of the world’s first carnivals.

“We are celebrating the first carnival in history, which happened in 1162 A.D. in the city of Venice. That’s 855 years ago,” Randall said. “So I’m dressed up as Casanova, my daughter Grace is dressed up as a medieval princess, and the third member of our troupe is the plague doctor, who is checking everybody to see if they have plague. We were in Venice and we saw the masks and when we asked where they all came from, we figured out that they were way ahead of us and that they’ve been doing this for hundreds of years.”

Sharing the culture of other countries was also the idea behind the Filipino Association’s three-sectioned troupe, which featured women in the front, men in the back, and a family float decorated with large cloth flowers. The troupe was met by applause from the second it came up the road, stopping first at the Market Square, where the first set of dancing began. The women sported flowered headdresses, the men held candles and the float in the back was topped by a gazebo. Organizers said the theme of the troupe was cultural unity, and represented the bonding together of the Filipino community with the Virgin Islands community.

Joy Santoli shows off the new costumes of Opi’a Taino’s Traditional Indians troupe.
Joy Santoli shows off the new costumes of Opi’a Taino’s Traditional Indians troupe.

Each year, the last entry on the parade route is always the Traditional Indians, but this year, the group splintered, giving the grassroots group Opi’a Taino International the chance to make a more authentic offering. Organizer Maekiaphan Phillips said that she spent the last two weeks suing the new costumes, which are more traditional than ever before.”

“This year we’re actually doing a tribute to all indigenous people,” Phillips said. “That includes the four waves of Indians that came to the Caribbean including the Arawaks and Tainos, and when you look at us you see that from the beginning, we all were a mixture. So, we are celebrating our native roots and the blending together of culture that is the Virgin Islands.”

The patriotic colors of the American flag, symbolizing the transfer of ownership of the Virgin Islands from Denmark to the United States 100 years ago, were also on display by the Eagles carnival troop, who came out Saturday preparing to defend their title. The Eagles were a big winner at last year’s Adult’s parade, and won the judges over with their intricate historical costumes, representing the beauty of all islands of the Caribbean with headdresses displaying each native bird.

This year, organizer Cain Magras said troupe’s theme was “Centennial Fireworks.”

“Fireworks are not just for the Centennial event,” Magras said. “They are also to celebrate the lives of the hundreds of people who made us famous over the last hundred years. We have politicians, we have some sports people, we have everybody represented.”

Asked if he expects the troop to win this year, Magras laughed and said it’s up to the judges.

“Like everyone else, I’m just out here to have fun,” he said.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Keeping our community informed is our top priority.
If you have a news tip to share, please call or text us at 340-228-8784.

Support local + independent journalism in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Unlike many news organizations, we haven't put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as accessible as we can. Our independent journalism costs time, money and hard work to keep you informed, but we do it because we believe that it matters. We know that informed communities are empowered ones. If you appreciate our reporting and want to help make our future more secure, please consider donating.