Revellers in the Bacchanal Carnival Road March on Knutsford Boulevard, New Kingston, on Sunday, April 3, 2005. - File

The 2009 carnival season climaxes today with a 10-hour soca orgy - Bacchanal Jamaica Road March. The event begins at 10:15 a.m. at the Mona hockey field and ends about 8 p.m. at Mas Camp.

Michael Ammar Jr, a director of Bacchanal Jamaica, told The Sunday Gleaner that persons can expect more pizzazz to this year's road march.

"We have gone overboard to make the costumes glamorous to tie in with our Hollywood theme this year," Ammar said. "We're going back to the more elaborate costumes with lots of feathers, more floats and making sure it's a spectacle for the revellers."

Group names

Eight groups (Star Dust, Moulin Rouge, Troy, Showgirls-Bacchanal Babes, Pocahontas, La Dolce Vita, Vegas Guys and Dolls and Casablanca) in coordinated costumes will 'jump' the eight-mile course to music by Imij and Company. As is customary, thousands of people are expected to line the streets for the fanfare of the lively soca music, the even livelier wining and the always awkward, yet funny, scenario of a helpless policeman being 'assaulted' by mischievous women.

While the two free-to-air television stations have been banned by the Broadcasting Commission from live telecasting of carnival, Ammar said cable network RE TV plans to broadcast live, while its sibling company, TVJ, will carry an edited package this evening.

Bacchanal Jamaica, which is celebrating its 21st anniversary, has been the dominant force for carnival this year, as its main competitor, Jamaica Carnival, withdrew from this year's festivities as it continues to mourn the death of its founder, Byron Lee, in November.

Ammar, however, said he was eager to see Jamaica Carnival return next year.

"Carnival cannot grow if there's a monopoly," he stated. "Bacchanal Carnival and Jamaica Carnival, in some ways, catered to different audiences, so between both of us we serviced most of the market. While we are mostly in Kingston, Jamaica Carnival would go to Negril and MoBay and Chukka Cove (St Ann). So people out of Kingston haven't really had much carnival this year."

Filled the void

Bacchanal Carnival included the Bacchanal series at Mas Camp each Friday from February 6 to April 3, Beach J'ouvert two Saturdays ago, Bacchanal J'ouvert last Friday and several smaller events. Outside of Bacchanal Jamaica, Digicel Downtown Carnival Road March, held last Monday, helped fill the void left by Jamaica Carnival.

Assessing this carnival season, Ammar said it has been one of the most memorable.

"The opening night (at Bacchanal Jamaica) was one of the best we've ever had - the attendance and vibes were awesome," he said. "Beach J'ouvert was exceptional with Machel Montano. I've been going to Trinidad Carnival for the last 25 years and I haven't seen anything like that (Montano's performance) since David Rudder."

According to bacchanalja maica.com, carnival in Jamaica began in 1989 when the Oakridge Boys gathered 300 revellers for a street parade. The subsequent emergence of two more Mas Bands, Revellers and Midnight Raider's Crew, the latter pioneering J'ouvert, helped spread carnival in the 1990s. The three bands merged in 2001 to form Bacchanal Jamaica.

Jamaica Carnival and Lee are also widely accepted as integral players in popularising Jamaica Carnival road marches, which have their origin in Trinidad and Tobago.