Copacabana is the oldest Carnival group on the Cape Verdean island of São Nicolau, which went two years without parading due to Covid-19, but will return soon in 2023 to celebrate its 80th birthday, promising “a great party”.
“We are recovering, we think things are going well, we think it keeps getting better and better, so that next year we can resume with that grandeur that characterizes the São Nicolau Carnival“, said Lusa Emanuel Cabral, president of Associação Copacabana, the oldest group on the island and one of the oldest in Cape Verde.
In the last two years, the island and the country have not taken to the streets to ‘play’ Carnival, but for Copacabana, next year’s return has everything to be special.
Here we have a special occasion, which is the celebration of our 80th birthday, so it is important that we are at least prepared to give this response, because our friends expect a good response,” he added.
According to the leader, this round date is already being prepared, and the group will celebrate “with a lot of love and circumstance” with all friends, acquaintances and the population of São Nicolau.
Next year’s Carnival will see the return of the King Momo party in the country, after two years without parades due to import restrictions to contain the spread of the new coronavirus.
For this reason, Emanuel Cabral has already made accounts for Carnival 2023, saying that it will be worth fourfor the two years of suspension, for the year of recovery and for the anniversary.
“That is our intention, we are going to try to make that happen, first to fill a little the empty space that there was during these two years due to the forced stoppage,” he said.
Almost 80 years old, the president said that the group is collecting information about his birth, but said there are those who say that it came from the Portuguese carnival, with the influence of emigrants.
“It has evolved since the 1930s, and our group appeared in 1943,” he explained, saying that the goal is to present all this data in the next year, where a “rave party” is expected for the group’s eight decades of existence. Copacabana group.
“God willing, this is what we intend. Surely with the support of the whole world we will be able to do it”, requested Emanuel Cabral, anticipating this special occasion for this group of which is the second most emblematic Carnival in Cape Verde, after São Vicente.
In addition to Copacabana, in São Nicolau there are more official Carnival groups, namely Estrela Azul and Brilho da Zona.
Source: Observadora
