July 14, 2008 — Instead of hiring someone from Trinidad, Antigua or New York to conjure up fabulous costumes for the Crucian Christmas Festival, the Festival Committee will offer a two-week evening course focused on teaching residents how to make costumes themselves. The dates, times and locations will be announced once the committee learns how many people are interested.
Festival spokeswoman Melody Rames said Sunday the committee is now gauging interest in the classes to be taught by master costume builders from Trinidad.
"We're hoping that people will get the basic idea of costume making and learn the tricks of the trade," Rames said.
It isn't all that simple, especially to build the big splashy ones that garner the most attention. Rames said it's a matter of balance. The costume has to accommodate the person inside the costume while allowing that person to dance down the street.
"It takes precision," she said.
Festival Committee Chairman Davidson Charlemagne estimated that 90 percent of parade participants go off island to get their costumes made.
"That's a lot of revenue coming out of the island," he said.
The Festival Committee's goal is to incorporate St. Croix culture into the costumes as well as help those involved with the annual celebration save money on their costumes.
"It's very expensive to bring designers in from off island," Rames said.
The classes will cover creating those eye-catching structural costumes that sometimes need wheels to help the wearer down the street as well as the body costumes and headdresses worn by troupe members.
Additionally, those who learn costume making skills can sell their skills to others across the territory.
Rames spent the weekend canvassing previous festival parade participants and said that almost all of them said they were interested in the classes.
Charlemagne hopes that the Festival Committee will also be able to offer the classes in the St. Thomas/St. John District.
The Festival Committee plans to charge a $30 application fee, but Charlemagne said that the island's secondary schools will be invited to send one student to the classes. The application fee will be waived for that student.
Those interested can call the festival office from 1 to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at 719-3379.
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