Fancy Indians
Ramesh Ramroop
24th Febuary 2020
Port Of Spain
Fancy Indians character doesn’t have a huge
story behind it, it is mainly just a portrayal of
the indigenous peoples of North America. This
type of mas is called pretty mas. They would
wear extravagant headpieces with huge colour-
ful feathers dropping down their back. These are
usually built and held together using wire. More
elaborate and heavy pieces are built using both
bamboo and wireframes. Their costumes often
include ostrich plumes, mirrors, beads, feathers,
papier-mache masks, totem poles, canoes and
ribbons. Fancy Indians typically play in bands.
Their band would consist of a warrior chief and
his family, a group of warriors, or a group of
chiefs. Other typ[es of Indians that can be in-
cluded in Indian mas are called Wild Indians.
They include Red Indians (Warahoons) and
Blue Indians, which are linked to the indigenous
peoples of Venezuela. There are also African
Indians.
Fancy Clowns
Fancy clown is pretty much what it says in
the title, a clown. In the early days, they were
considered fools. They have their own dances
and jokes and funny personas to entertain the
crowd. They wear baggy colourful clothing,
red noses, wild hair, big shoes and white faces.
Midnight Robber
Baby Doll
The baby doll character became common in
the 19th century. This character is to portray a
mother with an illegitimate child. The masquer-
ader usually wears a bonnet or a hat, gloves and
a frilled dress which exposes her legs. She car-
ries around one or more baby dolls which rep-
resents her illegitimate children. The character
stops male passers-by and accuses them of fa-
thering her children, she then embarasses them
into giving her money to support the child.
Delicia Charles
24th Febuary 2020
Port Of Spain
David Marlon
24th Febuary 2020
Port Of Spain
The midnight robber is one of the most loved
traditional carnival characters. This character is
based on the American Wild West. He wears a
wide-brimmed hat, a black cape and a skull face.
He is known for his ‘robber talk’. He talks very
boastfully and articulately, he speaks about his-
tory and robbers deeds in a very intelligent way.
He is often heard using literature and quoting
Shakespeare or the bible. The character often
has a sword or a gun and would threaten the
audience with it. The midnight robber is well
known for his signature whistle.