Festival fever heating up

Yesterday was the start of the Crop Over Festival Season 2018 and even though some persons were disappointed by the late start, the excitement was still high as several turned out for the season’s first major event, Crop Over X-Plosion.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, CEO of the National Cultural Foundation, Cranston Browne, stated that they chose once again to “lift off” the start of the season in the East of the island as the decentralisation of their events allowed them to spread the spirit of the Festival across the rural communities.

“[It is] a decision that was taken in response to previous stakeholder/public consultations and is something we hope to continue as we extend these celebrations of our cultural heritage into other parishes and rural communities across the island,” he said.

“Indeed, Crop Over is never stagnant or static, it is always dynamic, and growing, and changing, much like the move to rebrand this year’s opening as the First Citizens Crop Over X-plosion.”

Browne noted that this change was not just in the name but in the entire approach.

“It is about accepting the challenge to revisit the concept, embracing the millennial generation with activities that balance our entire edict of preserving our rich cultural heritage, while we draft our new stories and create new traditions,” he said.

“It is about the creation of an event that provides a look back, revering our past, while looking to the present, offering a tantalising glimpse of tomorrow.”

Indeed, even though there were some mild changes to the event, some old favourites such as rewarding and recognising the hard work of the male and female sugar workers remain.

“This year we will honour the outstanding contributions of two workers in the field,” he said.

“The Foundation worked closely with the Barbados Sugar Industries Limited and The Barbados Workers’ Union on the selection process of these two persons.”

This year, the Crop Over 2018 Award for the Most Outstanding Sugar Worker went to Neville Cato and Ernesta Williams. Williams and Cato took home many prizes including $1000 each from the NCF, $250 each from PAS Shipping Barbados, as well as staycations for two at Divi Southwinds, trips for two on LIAT to any of the LIAT destinations and trips to New York for two.

The evening ended with a Big Bang Concert, which included performances from some of the industry’s best performers, such as Nikita, Stiffy, Marzville, Edwin and Lil Rick.