Persons seeking to purchase tickets to Friday’s 2002 Junior Junkanoo Parade were advised to do so quickly as the supply is almost exhausted.
This came from Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture consultant Athama Bowe Tuesday.
“Most of the Junior Junkanoo tickets are gone,” Mr. Bowe said. “I would say about 89 percent of the tickets have been sold.”
While admitting that the new purchasing system and prices “surprised” Bahamians, Mr. Bowe said that since ticket booths opened on Dec. 2, sales matched last year’s sales, with most Bahamians waiting until “the very last minute” to make their purchases.
“Impulsively, people came out like that first day, but when they saw they could get tickets in less than two minutes, there was some people who said, ‘Oh, I can get it later.’ After that, it picked up again because the excitement for Junkanoo rose,” said Mr. Bowe.
This past week, ticket sellers have seen Bahamians coming to the Sir Kendal G. L. Isaacs National Gymnasium on their lunch breaks to purchase tickets.
Mr. Bowe said that the parade has received tremendous support from school participants’ families, most of whom bought most of the tickets.
There was some concern that the parade would interfere with Friday’s Soca Kings concert, which is being coordinated by Trevor Davis, after the Junkanoo overseeing committee rescheduled the parade from Thursday to Friday. However, Mr. Bowe saw no conflict.
“We met with Mr. Davis and he was quite challenged over the date change, but after he reviewed the schedule, he saw that indeed the parade would not interfere, seeing that the parade begins at 5 p.m. and his concert will not begin until later that night,” said Mr. Bowe.
Speaking at the Junior Junkanoo’s new venue at Cable Beach, Mr. Bowe said that he was pleased with the decision, as it accommodated Junkanoo participants’ plea to transform the cultural event into a festival.
He said that the “12 Days of Christmas” was an idea made in the interest of Junkanoo participants, which he said will attract new attention locally and internationally.
“With the enthusiasm displayed by the group leaders and the commitment of the government, the Minister’s (Neville Wisdom’s) leadership, and with corporate community, there is no reason why, in a very short time, The Bahamas’ Junkanoo experience cannot be an event that the whole world cannot participate in,” Mr. Bowe said.
The following schools are expected to participate in the parade: Kids Care, One-on-One, Fun Shine, St. Agnes Anglican Pre-school, Computer Boot Camp, Woodcock Primary, Gambier Primary School, C.H. Reeves, S.C. McPherson, A. F. Adderley Junior High, North Abaco High, Government High School, R.M. Bailey, C.V. Bethel Senior High and Harbour Island All-age School.
By Khashan Poitier, The Nassau Guardian
