Masquerade - or 'playing mas' - is at the heart of Carnival. Costume designers, called 'mas bands', spend the whole year creating enormous, glittering costumes covered in feathers, sequins, and beads. On Carnival Monday and Tuesday, players wear these costumes and dance through the streets for hours, becoming part of a moving piece of art.
The music of Carnival is soca - a fast, energetic genre full of rhythm and joy. Huge trucks carry enormous speakers through the streets, and bands play live on flatbed stages as the procession moves along. Steel bands also march, playing at full volume in the street. The sound is absolutely enormous.
J'ouvert is the street celebration that opens Carnival, starting before sunrise on Monday morning. Participants cover themselves in mud, chocolate, or paint and dance through the streets as dawn comes up. It is joyful, chaotic, and very messy - one of the most talked-about parts of the whole Carnival experience.
Calypso competitions take place during Carnival season, with singers performing witty, clever songs judged on melody, storytelling, and performance. The Calypso Monarch competition produces some of the most creative and entertaining performances of the entire festival.