After three years of postponement due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Sunshine Snacks Junior Kadooment was back with a bang at the National Botanical Gardens, St Michael, yesterday.
There was a plethora of colour as 25 bands danced across the stage, much to the delight of the hundreds of supporters who turned out to take in the spectacle.
Chief Executive Officer of the National Cultural Foundation (NCF), Carol Roberts, was equally pleased with what she saw.
“Today [yesterday] has gone extremely well. It has been an absolutely fantastic display of authentic Bajan masquerade paraded by none other than the nation’s children and supported by parents, caregivers, teachers, band leaders, designers and of course sponsors,” Roberts said.
“It was almost like being starved of being able to express yourself creatively for three years, everyone pulled out the stops and now it is our task and our pledge to build on that renewed commitment and energy to make it even better next year. It’s been amazing.”
In her opinion the location only added to the event’s splendour.
“It couldn’t have been a better place than the Botanical Gardens. You’ve got the huge swathes of land, shaded areas, mainland for a fair that we’ve taken over for today, complete with ramp and scaffolding, hundreds upon hundreds of little children jumping up to music: some Crop Over, some vintage Crop Over, current Crop Over and other genres in keeping with their themes. It’s been absolutely wonderful.”
Ten bands from the schools paraded before the judges. Springer Memorial was the lone secondary school band. (JC)