Dominica Festivals Committee (DFC) Consultant, Val Cuffy has said a lot more needs to be done for the staging of Tewey Vaval, which symbolically ends the Carnival season.
According to him, there were mistakes made in terms of the event and the DFC plans to correct them in the future.
“We would like to apologize for that, as I said we take our blows for this one, but our Marketing Executive Chad Ambo he did go on his own…there was a plan in place for us to go up there as a unit and give the support,” Cuffy said this week.“We actually gave a contribution for the support for Tewey Vaval but we need to do a lot more for Tewey Vaval.”
He also said a lot more needs to be done in terms of carnival for children.
“We need to do a lot more for the kids spectacular…” he noted, adding that the DFC plans to have more involvement moving forward with the various schools on island.
“We are going to have more engagement moving forward with the schools, get the schools prepared early so we will have more school bands on the road and give them more support,” he said.
Meantime, he revealed that a number of traditional groups were given financial support including the Division of Culture.
“We gave them $7,500 for the Old Mas Festival,” Cuffy revealed
The 2017 Carnival season officially ended with the annual Tewey Vaval in Dublanc and the Kalinago Territory.
Tewey Vaval is a funeral-like event that gives the impression that the Carnival is dead now and will be put to rest.
This includes viewing of “the body” of carnival, which is a life-sized doll which is burnt after a procession.
Kerosene torches (bouzai) were lit during the procession to the ‘grave.’
A lapo kabwit band brought the curtains down on the event.
The event is held every year in both communities.
“Tewey Vaval” is not our culture. It came from Europe together with the settlers. It also came to Dominica via the French Catholic planters, and the West African slaves who were converted to Catholicism by the French and Portuguese. Before Columbus arrived, there was no such thing as Tewey Vaval in Dominica. The activity is of religious origin, and blind people like Val, Colin, Benoit, Kathleen and Gerald Cools-Lartigue are playing with spiritualism, as if it is a big game.
The same applies to carnival. I saw a beautiful carnival in Venice in Italy, same dates as ours and wonderful costumes. I saw another one on you tube in Dusseldorf, Germany. Same thing with bands, colourful cosutmes and a float with characters of Trump, Le Pen of France, Wilders of Holland in het company of Hitler. Their carnival has noting to do with slavery but is the same as ours.
Are you kidding me? ?? This boy needs to retire, wait for his social security check and let younger people run that thing that he has single-handledly ran into the ground from previous faliures.
Tewy Vaval has never been our culture and Val your decision about this event is being questioned. This line of culture has never been generally accepted; so why introduce it now? With all due respect your mental and cultural capacity should be criticized .
The kalinago people deserve more to promote the culture of the island. It has aloways been part of Dominican culture, apart from what goes on in roseau. I support that move Val.
Of top significance and only which has true meaning and purpose, is http://LetThereBeLight.simplesite.com/433887186.
Start planning for carnival all now. That’s how it’s done in Trinidad. As soon as carnival finish, they start plans for the next one. Team no sleep. Let’s go Val.
All I keep hearing is more needs to be done, more needs to be done, more needs to be done! Well you are the consultant, you are getting paid to consult, so tell us what is the more!! You want to officially commercialize Dominica’s carnival to attract more people. Great! When you fix the streets of Roseau so people don’t break their legs, then we can talk. When you insist that calypso must be played rather than the other thing, then we can talk. When you find a way to make importing materials for bands cheaper, then we can talk. Bring us a plan. Don’t just tell us we need to do more. Tell me what your ‘more’ entails.
We need to build not break down, stop criticising, too many expertsTourism and its committees needs to get their act together, I find this year everything upside down, too many Consultants, want to fix things that are not broken,
The Old Mass Festival at Portsmouth was great I enjoyed myself, Cultural Division used the $7,500.00 well. there were over 25 old mass traditional groups, just a pity the media was not there to film that- Cultural Division must be commended for a job well done. I think I saw some guys filming. Culture get them to play the video
Then we had schools T-shirt bands what is that for me. Schools should be in costume.
Mass Jamboree now a pageant students in swimwear. I thought it was educational.
Then costume bands came out late. Expo
I heard something was on within the Queen Show but I heard members allowed professionalism to prevail and the show was held. Let us work with what we have and market,market, market our carnival get more…
One of the biggest setback of carnival is the late planning. People in other countries save a certain sum of money every month in preparation for carnival. The school should have costumes bands not T-shirt bands and they should begin planning as early as October, registration viewing of costume options or selection and designing It is also time for everybody to be part of a T-shirt band instead of people just jumping that disorganized way of street jump-up. We need to evolve. Make progress. Improve. What about the calypsoes? We barely heard them on the road. Can’t the bouyon music be launched at a later date after Easter? or a Bandorama?
Are you fool of ish? Bouyon launched at a later date?
Do you want any turn out? I wont go to town just for some Calypso… sigh.
Do you hear other countries suggesting that we should… I don’t know, cut off Soca until some later date?
Bandorama… Panorama… This is why old people shouldn’t plan anything and expect the young to just follow. Get a forum for this and do it right. Get old AND young alike. Not just those with position or “false power” but those real thinkers, strategists and planners.
That’s actually how to also move this country forward.
Stop interfering where it is not wanted Val. Please, this is a people’s thing, don’t take it away from them. Make your own show.
But what dream Val wake up from nuh? Why didn’t he suggest a kid’s extravaganza at the start of the season? Why didn’t he appeal for more schools’ inclusion in carnival activities before the carnival finish?
This is a technical blame game… If these great ideas of his that came after… someone asked him why did YOU not do this and that.
hundred percentage with you on this one … more needs to be done
He want dis done, dat done…. my brother u dat in charge now.. u been in charge b4…do the work and stop talking!!!