The Kitchen Carnival celebrates the ‘Old Mas’ traditions of Trinidad and Tobago, using recycled household materials. We film our work in our own homes and put it together to create a group performance on video. We explore the history of Carnival as a response by enslaved African peoples to the elaborate balls held by slave owners, making costumes from whatever they could find, and mocking the behaviour of the wealthy. You can enjoy all of the Kitchen Carnival activities from home using things from your kitchen, scissors and a glue stick.

The theme for the Kitchen Carnival 2026 is Cow Band – see below for workshop videos, and click here to download a PDF of Cow Band Carnival images. Click here to find out how to make a Kitchen Carnival cowbell percussion ‘agogo’ from empty tins or plastic bottles, spoons and rubber bands.) Click here to read poems about Cow Bands and Carnival from participants in the Together! 2012 Pop-Up Poetry Club.

Workshops with international Carnival artist Clary Salandy begin on Wednesday 15 July and continue weekly from 2.30-3.30pm on Zoom, finishing on 12 August. You can see videos from the workshops below. “On Carnival Monday it consisted of a small group of men dressed in gowns of sacking made from rice bags. These gowns were completely covered with dried plantain leaves. Each masquerader wore a homemade papier-mâché mask representing the head of a cow mounted by a pair of cow horns where they would charge the bullfighter.” http://www.tntisland.com/carnivalcharacters.html

You can watch previous years performances and take part in related activities on our website. In 2025 we celebrated Burrokeets, in 2024 we celebrated Dragons, in 2023 we celebrated Pierrot Grenades, in 2022 we celebrated Fancy Sailors, and in 2021 we celebrated Bats!. You can also create your own percussion instruments from things you have in your kitchen. We’d love to see your work – email photos to us info@together2012.org.uk or tag us on social media (ukdpctogether on X, together2012cic on other channels).

Videos

Click here to view a video of cows grazing on Wansted Flats in Newham. Carnival artists study characters from the natural world such as Bats!, Burrokeets and Cows very carefully before devising their performances.