20 Carnival Kings, 20 Queens head into semis

THE stage at Queen's Park Savannah, Port of Spain was transformed on Thursday night into a portal through which mystical creations from the imaginations of mas-makers came to life.

The preliminary competition for 2023 Senior King and Queen of Carnival saw 36 men and 37 women presenting an array of design concepts under categories including African, fantasy and historic.

Patrons from all walks of life and age groups streamed into the North Stand with the assistance of ushers at nearly every point of entry.

Presentations began promptly at 7 am with an opening performance by Neil "Iwer" George.

Speaking to Newsday, one attendee said, "I was impressed by the number of hospitality staff available. I felt well-taken care of. I was not confused or overwhelmed by the space. It was well-organised and the show was great. My only issue was that I thought each performance could have been shorter." The preliminaries ended at about 2 am on Wednesday.

The top 20 Kings and Queens move on to the semis on February 15 at Carnival City in the savannah at 7 pm.

Heading into the semifinals are the top 10 Kings – Kyle Anthony Matas, Ravi Lakhan, Ted Eustace, Marlon Rampersad, Raymond Mark, Erron Sookdeo, Joseph Lewis, Earl Beckles, Joel Lewis and Ronald Barney Blaize.

The top 10 queens of the 20 heading into semifinals are Laura Rampersad, Dana Rampersad, reigning queen Shynel Brizan, Turona Rambharose, Takeyah Fletcher Marshall, Quincyann Alexander, Savitri Holassie, Priya Nagassar, Krystal Thomas and Nisa Nathu Hari.