Cape Town - It’s back to the streets for the upcoming Cape Town Carnival as organisers confirm that the festival will resume its parade to celebrate all South Africans.
The carnival will be held on March 18 and will take place in the heart of the Mother City along the fan walk in Green Point (Somerset Road).
The 2023 theme is “Afr’energy”, which is defined as “the incredible personal and collective energy that lives in all the people of Cape Town and South Africa”.
Next year’s celebrations will include a total of 1 600 performers. This will be made up of 48 community groups and multiple performers who will celebrate South Africa’s culture and creativity.
The parade will make its way down the fan walk in Green Point, which will be closed to vehicle traffic. The main parade will kick off at 7pm.
The last time the carnival held a parade was in 2019 and saw a two-year hiatus during the Covid-19 pandemic. And this year’s carnival consisted of multiple location set-up where different performers showcased at each location. Festival-goers could hop from one location to the other throughout the day to get the full festival experience.
Cape Town Carnival board chairperson Professor Rachel Jafta said South Africans are facing several challenges and the celebration, through the carnival, was a means to overcome them.
“As individuals, we must summon our courage, dare to dream of a better world, work with our community of support, and build the world we want to live in; the alternative is disempowering and miserable,” she said.
This will be the 12th edition of the carnival and the first authentic carnival experience post-Covid-19. The carnival is free and paid seating is available.
Cape Town Carnival CEO Jay Douwes said South Africans could build a better world and have fun doing it.
“We experience this in the participating communities of the Cape Town Carnival,” she said.
“This is the powerful Afr’energy of Capetonians and South Africans and we want to celebrate it as we creatively renew our collective strength to move forward,” she added.