Excitement builds as Kaapse Klopse troupes prepare for competition
Kaapse Klopse troupe owners are gearing up to defend their titles and elevate the competition for the upcoming season.
Excitement and anticipation filled the boardroom at Athlone Stadium on Tuesday night October 29 as troupe owners participated in a draw to determine their match-ups for the annual Kaapse Klopse Karnival Association competition.
According to the fixtures, a total of 16 troupes will be competing, with each section hosting eight teams.
Kaapse Klopse Karnival Association chairperson Claude Jonas said it’s the first time the KKKA board and troupe owners have had an open draw.
“It’s the first year we’ve gone through the process of an open draw, it showcases what we intend or the vision of where we are going to with the carnival and the competition,” he said.
“We know that the product in itself is developing each and every year so we try to make this as professional as possible and as fair as possible, it’s quite satisfying that we could do this successfully this evening. Everybody is happy and excited.”
Yusuf Gester one of the Juvie Boy Entertainers troupe directors and 2023/2024 Section 2 winners from Mitchell’s Plain said they were happy with the draw.
“I like what happened tonight, it was a nice transparent draw, a first for the association and for us as troupe it was nice to see that we could involve all the teams in the process, that’s a plus, and can only get better.”
But, there was a lot of hard work ahead, said Mr Gester.
“We strive to compete on high levels and nothing less this year. We are quite happy with where we are placed, we are prepared for anything.”
Athlone’s West London All Stars, winners of section 1 in the 2023/2024 season said they were ready to defend their title of Carnival Kings. “Ons kom vir jou. We are more than ready for anyone,” said WLAS director Shaheed Simons.
TV Stars from Heideveld celebrates it’s 21st anniversary this year and are “stoked” with their placement. Team spokesperson and captain, Safia Abdullah said the team would be more than ready.
“We are super stoked about our placement, we want to show the bigger teams what small dedicated teams are made of - hard work and determination always pays off…we still have a bit of work to do but we know we will be more than ready the first day we line up for competition and the band strikes. There's very few things in life that can compete with that feeling of the first morning when all your months of practice just automatically comes together.”
Ramees Cassiem, director of Playaz Inc from Mitchell’s Plain, said the team planned to “bring the house down”.
“We are actually glad with our placement and we’re going all out. We’re going in with a bang and whatever we’re bringing, we’re bringing 100 percent.”
District Six Hanover Minstrels troupe owner Ziyaad Williams usually opens the Cape Town Street Parade - and he said the public should expect them to open the parade again in 2025. “We enjoy what we do, we’re doing it again. This season we’ve stepped up and for the upcoming season we are stepping up twice,” he said
KKKA director Muneeb Gambeno said all systems are in place for the upcoming season and that they’ve used the past few years to create systems that work.
“We are very confident about the association’s readiness from an event hosting perspective and it seems that the troupes have been practising hard since June this year. There is big excitement and morale amongst all the leaders for a healthy competition. We are looking forward to a quality event that leans on the preparatory work the association has done,” he said
The annual Tweede Nuwe Jaar parade, also known as the Cape Town Street Parade, will be held on Saturday January 4, 2025.
If you have a story to tell, pictures to share or updates of your team, email tauriq.hassen@acm.co.za and let’s give the minstrel community a platform to shine.