by Thinus Ferreira
After it had to be scuppered because of the national lockdown period for the Covid-19 pandemic just days before it was supposed to take place in 2020, the reimagined Cape Town Carnival 2022 will be back as an in-person event after two years on 19 March with R10 tickets and reinvented as a hop-around, pop-up experience taking place across five different hubs, each with five shows during the day that will celebrate the city's diverse cultures and stories.
Instead of floats and large crowds lining the streets, the Cape Town Carnival 2022 is being spread out into five different hubs to make social distancing easier and to still adhere to Covid-19 safe protocols, while people get to enjoy 30-minute shows and performances while they explore Cape Town, its streets, restaurants and galleries.
Adhering to the number of people allowed in a venue, the hubs will be sanitised before every show and visitors will be screened on entry, with compulsory mask-wearing in place.
There will be a 1-hour interval between each show for venues to be sanitised and it will take a visitor about 10 to 15 minutes to enter a hub as they go through Covid-19 screening protocols and ticket check-in.
"This year's Cape Town Carnival will move people like never before. Literally. Visitors curate their own experience as they move between five distinct outdoor Carnival Hubs across the city," explains Jay Douwes, CEO.
On 19 March the Cape Town Carnival 2022 will take place at five different hubs from 14:30 to 21:30 on the day: The Mountain of Memories at Hatfield Street Hub, the Cultural Roots at the National Gallery Hub, the Tales of Camissa at the South African Museum Hub, Imswenko at the Heritage Square Hub, and The Drum Era at the Green Market Hub.
Visitors will be able to visit any or all of the differently colour-coded hubs, in any order, at a showtime they choose with each hub that has varying capacity depending on the size of the space, ranging between 2 000 to 4 500 attendees.
"We're driven by the fundamental belief
in the power of creativity. This inspired the Cape Town Carnival team to find a new way to bring joy to the city once more," says Professor Rachel Jafta, chairperson of the
Cape Town Carnival Trust.
The Cape Town Carnival has historically been a free event, but for the Cape Town Carnival 2022 will require confirmed attendance with visitors supplying Covid-19 track-and-trace information through booking and purchasing a R10 ticket per person, per show, at the official Cape Town Carnival website at https://capetowncarnival.com.
For R50 a visitor will be able to experience five different and unique shows.
Tickets for Cape Town Carnival 2022 will also be sold on the day at each of the five hubs, online at the official website, or www.webtickets.co.za, or at Pick n Pay. One ticket is valid for one show, at one of the five hubs.
No food or drink will be sold in or at the hubs but the Cape Town Carnival partnered with local businesses and restaurants in the area where visitors will be able to buy food and refreshments. People will not be allowed to eat or drink inside the hubs since the Carnival wants visitors to enjoy the experience with their masks on.
Covid-19 temperature screening will be done before someone can enter a hub, a visitor must wear a face mask, children over the age of 6 will need to wear a mask, and sanitisers will be available at entry to each hub.
Geordin Hill-Lewis, Cape Town mayor, says that through "Outdoor dining, open-air experiences and the reimagined Carnival hubs, we're excited to bring people together and support local businesses in a Covid-safe way".
Collen Dlamini, group executive for corporate at MultiChoice, with the pay-TV company that is one of the partners of the Cape Town Carnival 2022, says "The Carnival has a tremendous social impact and MultiChoice is proud to be able to once again be a partner in this celebration of culture that creates opportunities for community participation and networking, builds social cohesion, creates jobs and drives tourism".
Brad Baard, Cape Town Carnival creative director, says "The ultimate vision of the Cape Town Carnival is that we come together, see each other, appreciate each other and celebrate each other".
