Masquerade Marching

October 31, 2009





Masquerade Marching





If there is one Fantasy Fest event that truly captures all the best qualities of the week-long celebration it is the Masquerade March that is held on Friday evening. The parade begins at 5 PM at the cemetery and winds along two separate paths that wind through the Old Town neighborhood eventually reconnecting as the two sections each spill out onto Duval Street where the day-long street fair is in full swing.

Kathy





What makes the Masquerade March so compelling is that it is dominated by locals, as most of the 4000 or so participants are locals and all are dressed up in costumes that are made with the creativity that is so representative of our artistic island community. It makes for a very special gathering and some of the most interesting and innovative costumes of the week.





It is especially enjoyable to see many costumes that reference local issues and that only Key Westers would understand. Unlike the madness on Duval Street, there is very little nudity, though some bawdy or humorous references to sex can be seen. Key Westers seem to understand that the hint of sex can be far more powerful than the ugly blatant displays that seem to be taking over certain aspects of Fantasy Fest.

Chris & Erin



Kathy & Elliot

Kathy & I came up with the idea to dress as Snow White and the evil Witch Queen, with me playing the role of Snow White. The costumes fit in this year’s theme of Villians, Vixens and Vampires. The costumes were fairly simple but seemed to be fairly popular.

Holly & Craig

Joanna & Jim



Before the beginning of the march, we headed over to a pre-party at the Olivia Street home of our friends Wendy & Scott where a crowd of costumed people mingled and made the final preparations for the march. The weather was hot, sunny in the high 80s with high humidity which made the march a pretty hot experience, especially the first portion that was under the bright sunshine.





We met up with Elliot, who is still on his visit from Malta and extended his stay to partake in Fantasy Fest, and headed off with the throng following the Fleming Street route which took us through the heart of Old Town. There were literally thousands of people and we ran into many friends, both as parade participants and those watching along the sidewalks.

Kathy & The Cookie Lady

Wendy, Srea, Steve & Keith

Once again, I am going to take two entries to give the march adequate blog coverage, though even that is short shrift as it is one of those classic examples of something best experienced.

Elliott