The event has been created to celebrate Black History Month and will include the iconic Katumba Halloween Carnival.

 

Every October, Katumba holds events across L8 and L1 that culminate with a spectacular street carnival in Liverpool City Centre.

 

The theme

This year, Katumba will explore a crucial narrative: the perils we and our planet face.

Katumba and partners will bring to life our future planet and its few remaining habitants nearing extinction, as a tale of warning and a glimpse of hope.

Through fancy dress we will become ambassadors from our future world who have come back to warn the people of today of the dire consequences if we continue to destroy our planet.

We offer a crucial message – to urge people to wake up, protest for and protect our planet, its people and its wildlife.

As always, Katumba stays true to the origins of Carnival itself, which are with Afro Brazilian slaves from the diaspora.

 

Why Carnival?

During the period of slavery, enslaved people were not allowed to practice their religion and culture.

Drumming was a way for them to reconnect with their history, their identity, their spirituality, their loved ones, their homeland – everything that had been taken from them.

Even after the abolition of slavery in Brazil in 1888, as freed people they were still outcast.

So they reclaimed the streets with drums, fashioning instruments from trash cans, old paint tins with bamboo sticks – becoming what we know today as the ‘repinque’ drum, or ‘repique’.

To reclaim their identity and take up the space they deserved, they would go out on the street, make themselves known and make noise.

Carnival is linked to Catholicism in other parts of the world too; all part of the immense melting pot of influences and culture involved in our ideas of Carnival.

Black History Month 

At Katumba, we fiercely hold on to the protest element of Carnival.

We make ourselves known, we take up space, and we do this especially in Liverpool, because it is built on the slave trade.

Our aim is to empower by creating the spaces and opportunities for the people to take back the streets.

We are aware that this is a cultural art form that we use, and our mission is always to hold true to its protest origins, speaking for the people who experience erasure or oppression, through drumming.

We use protest for all our key events every year, such as Pride and Slavery Remembrance Day, and we use it particularly during black history month.

 

Climate Change

This year, we are also shouting about climate change. We are bringing the fight for our planet to the streets, to raise awareness of the dire need to act.

We are shining a light on the terrifying reality that by allowing climate change to continue, we are destroying humanity, destroying our planet and destroying wildlife.

To do that we have our cycling mass, honouring, celebrating and promoting cycling and the people who choose it, who are contributing to protecting our planet by making alternative choices to cars

We celebrate the power of those choices by creating a cycling blockade as part of the Carnival, pulsing with energy and light.

Tradition and Identity

Drawing on traditions of Druidic Samhaim, Dia de los Muertos, Dia de Finados in Latin America, and Axexê in African Yorubá, the event promises to ‘open a portal between dimensions’.

Over the Katumba Halloween Festival, through our programme of workshops and particularly at the Carnival on Saturday 29 October, we aim to re-ignite all of our shared cultural history and tribal religions, through our fancy dress, sound and movement.

We are evoking a mass community connection with the spirits.

Those of our past heritage and ancestry – and perhaps those of the future, through our manifestations of ambassadors from the future coming back to warn us about what might lie ahead and to give us hope that there could be another way.

 

Juliana Pinheiro Landim, Katumba’s Co-Founder said, “We are thrilled to bring back the Katumba Halloween Carnival as part of our city’s Black History Month programme.

This year our theme is a crucial tale of the lasting and detrimental impact we have on our planet, and how our actions on the Northern hemisphere affect those in the Global South.

Through our diverse programme and powerful performance art, we aim to inspire and ignite a determination in onlookers and participants to make change – for the future of our planet, and future generations.”

 

 

Who it is for?

Everyone. The event is open to all and everyone is invited to take part in this immersive spectacle combining drums, fire, lights, illuminated bicycles, dance, theatre and costume.

 

Workshops

We are holding two weeks of community cultural workshops in the run up to taking part in the Carnival.

They act as preparatory workshops for people interested in taking part in the carnival parade itself.

They also make excellent standalone sessions.

Participants will express their realities using oral traditions and ludic sharings.

We will learn about positive and accessible changes, and collectively find solutions to be translated into pieces of music, dance, theatre and art that will then become part of the carnival parade.

You will be learning from professionals and creating your own prop, beat, and/or dance move for the big night.

The workshops are for all ages.

 

Drumming

Workshops include our Katumba Drumming & Movement tasters for new and aspiring performers. These workshops, including adults, family, and kids only sessions, are a great way to come and find out what the Katumba Drumming & Movement buzz is all about.

You will meet the founders, learn the Katumba beats and moves, and most importantly, have a great time.

We’ll take you on a journey of body percussion, drumming and movement to get your body ready to wear our drums!

This year we have an extra special challenge for our Families and Kids, they will be building their own upcycled drum and performing with it in the parade. We can’t wait to get blown away by what they come up with, and we know they will be too!

Expect to feel uplifted, inspired, full of energy and wanting more.

Drumming is literally the beating heart of the parade, so head over to our Eventbrite page and book on to a drumming workshop now!

Then bring your skills along to the parade and feel empowered and ignited by joining the core drumming troupe. Feel the power!

BOOK FAMILY DRUMING HERE

BOOK KIDS DRUMING 8+ HERE

 

Lantern Making

Be part of the illumination by attending our Lantern Making Workshop, delivered by our partners LUMA, where we invite everybody to create wonderful illuminations to light up the Parade as it pulses along the route.

BOOK LANTERN MAKING HERE

 

Dance

Plus Carnival partners Movema will be delivering a series of Dance for Diaspora workshops celebrating diversity through dance, creating safe spaces for us all to create and move as we prepare for the big night!

No experience is needed for any of the workshops.

 

Call out to Cyclists

There will be an epic illuminated mass bike ride as part of the Carnival Parade. All cyclists are welcome to join in, in fact, we insist on it!

Come to the cyclist’s workshop to get your bike Carnival ready, then hit the Carnival Parade in style.

Illuminated Bike Ride Workshop details will be announced very soon.

 

Workshop Programme Details

Saturday 15th October, 10.30am Katumba Drumming Taster for Adults (Katumba). Book tickets here.

Saturday 15th October, 1pm Katumba Drumming Taster for Adults (Katumba). Book tickets here.

Sunday 23th October, 11am Lantern Making Workshops (LUMA Creations and Katumba). Book tickets here.

Friday 28th October, 10.30am Family Drumming Workshop (Katumba). Book tickets here.

Friday 28th October, 1pm Kids Drumming Workshop 8+ (Katumba). Book tickets here.

 

Pre-booking is essential for all workshops. For more information, please visit www.katumba.co.uk/halloween

CLICK HERE FOR FULL WORKSHOP PROGRAMME

 

 

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