As the exhilaration for Carnival 2010 gets to an all time high, everyone is beginning to feel the impending festival heat.
Soca bands and artistes have to put in extra rehearsal time and deliver more hard hitting performances, patrons have to be more selective with the events they attend and of course the promoters have to become more creative in their attempts to draw crowds to their fetes.
In the latter case, special themes have become almost essential in giving one Carnival fete an innovative edge over another.
DancehallSoca.com was indeed honoured to cover one such themed event last Sunday, as we attended Dr. Fuad Khan and Friends annual all inclusive which this year was called “Hot Vegas Nights”.
As our media team entered we were greeted by beautiful promo girls bearing complimentary glasses of Baileys as we observed the superbly decorated Pier 1 venue and hundreds of excited attendees dressed to impress. This was indeed an indication of the first rate Las Vegas lounge style treatment that we would experience throughout the evening.
“Hot Vegas Nights”, boasted a large collection of meals and desserts which represented all segments of Trinidad and Tobago’s culture, with some touches of international flavour.
One could enjoy everything from Curry and several Indian delicacies to exotic Chinese cuisine and Arabian food treats. This was complemented by full premium bars located at different points of the venue.
The organising team did a great a job in transforming Pier 1 into a comfortable, luxurious Sunday evening fete environment. To emphasize the Vegas theme, mannequins dressed to resemble celebrities were on display; also footage of Las Vegas performances by artistes such as Elvis Presley could be viewed on huge stage side monitors.
This fete also scored high on the entertainment side of things.
Music was provided by The Hitman Howie T (The Master of the Old School).
Howie T thrilled the audience in this unique fete with Calypso and Soca classics, Chutney hits, the latest Carnival 2k10 music tracks and even popular 1970’s and 80’s dance tunes.
The first live band to take the stage at Hot Vegas Nights was the ever energetic Karma.
Featuring the vocals of Ravi B, Nisha B and newcomer Gregory Ayuen, the band rocked Pier 1 with a lively Soca and Chutney repertoire including original songs “Rum is Meh Lover”, “Dularie Nani” and “Drinka”.
The Karma set also included a special guest appearance by none other than Soca Elvis (an appropriate act to go along with the evening’s theme). Soca Elvis rendered his latest Chutney offerings to the delight of many in attendance.
Next up was the popular unit Kes The Band, who had the audience jumping, waving and wining in exuberance. Kes’ performance certainly brought a lot of joy to the Socaphiles in the fete, however, the band showed their love for Chutney music in the onstage duet by lead singer Kees Dieffenthaller and Karma’s Ravi B during a rendition of Hunter’s “Jep Sting Naina”.
During the band changes, waitresses passed out shot glasses filled with liquor to the guests as they danced to the DJ’s selections.
At this time prizes were also given out in the form of hampers to the best dressed male and female.
Rikki Jai made an appearance and delivered many of his past hits. The local music icon had the masses in the palm his hand as he performed classic after classic.
In his campaign to become the 2010 Chutney Soca Monarch King, Rikki sang his latest single entitled “Barman”.
Imij and Company was the night’s last onstage act. The famous band carried the capacity crowd on a musical time trip and kept it current with 2010’s biggest Soca songs. With dynamic deliveries from frontliners Russell C, Michelle Xavier and Junior Don, Imij added to what was already a glorious fete experience.
Hot Vegas nights was nothing short of a true success and was praised for its high quality in entertainment, its innumerable food and drink options and the outstanding service and cooperation of its staff.
DancehallSoca.com thanks Dr. Fuad Khan and Friends for our media access to this event.
We surely hope be on hand for 2011’s edition.
DancehallSoca.com... Carrying on with the Carnival excitement!
