April 25, 2008 — Though dark gray skies menaced overhead, not a drop of rain dampened the spirit or enthusiasm of the nearly 40 troupes and hundreds of revelers that turned out for Friday's Children's Carnival Parade.
Main Street, as usual, was well stocked for the event, with residents staking out their sitting space days in advance. Educators Park, Post Office Square and the brick walls going up Government Hill were also covered in a sea of faces — many hidden under multi-colored umbrellas to block the glare of the sun or shield against the possibility of the storm that never came.
Instead, troupe after troupe made their way down the parade route, dazzling spectators with their festive costumes, bright steel pan music or — in the case of the majorette groups — flawless baton routines. Many of the traditional groups were out in full force Friday, including the Traditional Indians, which rounded out the parade at 3:30 p.m., and the Tropical Masqueraders, who braved heat and humidity in deep purple and white velvet costumes.
There were also many unique entries this year, including a "Peace Train"-themed routine from the students at V.I. Montessori School. Following an actual wooden train driven down the road by one of the school's teachers, the students danced in the background dressed as angels, rainbows and Greek figures wearing laurel-leaf crowns on their heads.
Royalty abounded this year, as the princes, princesses and queens of many different schools made their way down the route. After the announcement of this year's grand marshal, the parade opened with the introduction of the 2008 Carnival Princess, Queen and their courts. Carnival Princess Kyrelle Thomas awed the crowd with a pink and yellow ball gown as she strode regally down the pavement, followed by first runner-up Zakiyyah Stubbs in peacock blue.
The Sebastien Majorettes made their debut early in the day, the first of the troupes to do the popular "Bed Rock" dance that soon became a theme throughout the rest of the parade. Dressed in patriotic red, white and blue costumes, the majorettes combined with the Tempo network this year on a campaign to "Keep Badness Out of Style."
Members of the Sebastien Majorettes get the crowd going with a flag routine.
The Charming Twirlers Majorettes kept the batons flying with twirlers as young as 4 years old paying tribute to the late Jam Band singer Trevor Nicholas "Nick" Friday, with a routine set to the group's winning "How to Take the Road," which took the Road March title in 2005.
"I really like the parade," said 12-year-old Kyjahna Gerard, leader of the Twirlers' 4-to-6 division. "I like coming out and having fun with the other kids. We've been working on the routine since November, just to make sure we got it right. And I think it came out pretty good this year."
The majorettes weren't the only group that had been practicing for months. Bertha C. Boschulte Middle School's "Burning Blazers" Steel Orchestra has actually made learning how to play the steel pan a part of the curriculum.
"It usually takes the kids about four to five days to learn a song," said school principal Carver Farrow. "But the process in getting everything ready for the parade takes a bit longer, because we actually teach the kids how to read the music, too, not just teach them how to play one specific instrument."
Several Road March competitors lined the parade route — many accompanying various troupes. With a routine called "Any Weather is Great to Celebrate," members of the Fete'Tastic Carnival Troupe dressed up in sunshine, rain, thunder and rainbow outfits, and did their dance routine to live music provided by Bouncers Band, whose road march entry this year is entitled "Skip 'n' Dip." Others, such as the St. Thomas All Stars Steel Orchestra, played competing songs on their steel pans, such as Jam Tyme's "Champions."
The band that got the most applause, however, was the JDPP Jammerz, whose infamous Bunny Train routine was eclipsed this year with a dance performance featuring Gov. John deJongh Jr. Appearing in the middle of a sea of performers wearing bright neon rain outfits, deJongh earned an "A+" from parade commentators by doing the "Bed Rock" and the "Stiff Wuk-up."
The Road March champion will be crowned Saturday evening, along with this year's Children's Parade Winners. This year's Adult's Parade kicks off at 10 a.m. Saturday morning.
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