CARNAVAL DEL PUEBLO 2010

SUNDAY AUGUST 1ST - BURGESS PARK, CAMBERWELL, SE5 0RJ

STREET PARADE from Midday at Elephant Road (Elephant & Castle)

Celebrating the bicentenary of Independence in Latin America,
as well as attempting to Break The Guinness World Record In Salsa Dancing

19 Latin American countries represented ** 5 Stages ** 10 Hours of Festivities
3 Mile Carnival Procession

Special Guests: Salsa stars from NYC - Lebron Brothers

Carnaval del Pueblo is sponsored by 02 and supported by
Southwark Council, the Mayor of London and Arts Council England

This weekend, London’s second biggest street festival Carnaval del Pueblo explodes in joyous and colourful fiesta glory onto the streets of Elephant & Castle and then at Burgess Park, Camberwell, the largest celebration of Latin American culture in Europe.

Its theme in its 12th year is the bicentenary of independence for many Latin American countries, and it promises to be one of the most vibrant and family-friendly festivals this August in the capital. In just over a decade, the colourful Carnaval del Pueblo fiesta of all things Latin American, is the event of the year for all Latinos and lovers of their culture. A celebration of their roots for expat communities in the capital, and a massive party for Londoners of all communities who come together to share this intense cultural experience.

The Mayor of London Boris Johnson, who is supporting the event, has welcomed this year's celebrations saying:
"London has a vibrant and diverse Latin American community, which makes an important contribution to the life of the capital. Truly, it knows how to throw a party and there is an astonishing variety of events throughout the year, from locally initiated celebrations like the Christian Hispanic Summer Festival and Carnaval de las Independencias, to international one-offs like the Southbank's high profile Brazilian season. The Carnaval del Pueblo is an annual fixture and amongst the highlights, so with many countries marking 200 years of independence – something City Hall will also be marking - get the Latin spirit and join what promises to be one of the liveliest, most colourful festivals of 2010."

Inspired by the vibrant costumes and dances from the famous carnivals of Rio de Janeiro, Colombia, Mexico, Cuba, Bolivia, Ecuador and more, Carnaval Del Pueblo starts with its spectacular and technicolour giant float procession from Elephant Road (Elephant & Castle) at 12pm midday as people line the streets in their thousands, before making its way through Walworth Road into Albany Road and finishing at Burgess Park at 3pm.

Eco-friendly, many of the costumes and floats are made of recycled materials, and floats are pushed rather than running on fuel, and hundreds join in the procession as it makes its way towards the park. Once at Burgess Park, revellers can enjoy regionally themed food, drink, live music and, of course, dance late into the night.

There are a number of different stages - Main Stage, Brasilian Fever Stage, Andean Stage, Unite The Union Stage and Children's Stage - offering everything from traditional music and dance to the hottest contemporary reggaeton and Latin hip-hop and much much more.

With a mesmerising feast of food and crafts stalls and activities for children, the Carnaval Del Pueblo spectacular runs until 10pm making this day an experience full of Latin passion.

Special this year is the Carnaval Del Pueblo’s attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the Most Couples Dancing Salsa At The Same Time, led by Tara Hoyos-Martinez, the current Miss Universe GB, and everyone is welcome to enter, whether in a couple or not.

"We will team people up in couples and they don’t have to have any experience of salsa, easy and simple steps will be uploaded on our website for people who want to practice, join in, have fun and break the record’, says Paola Estrada, event coordinator.

The carnival has a history of attracting world class stars and Grammy Prize winners such as Grupo Niche, Oscar D’León, Willie Colón, Adalberto Santiago, Gilberto Santa Rosa and Henry Fiol –the salsa giants– as well as Lizandro Mesa and The Embajadores Vallenatos, who enjoy almost God-like stature in Latin America, and who introduced the highly danceable Cumbia and Vallenato music to the West.

This year’s Special Guests are NYC’s Salsa stars, the Lebron Brothers, playing their eternal classics such as “Salsa Y Control” and “La temperatura”, and recent smashes, “Si me Permite”, “Complicados”, and “Culebra”.

Carnaval also presents a multitude of London and European-based artists performing the best of cutting edge Latino rhythms, beats and songs. Now with a hotbed of second-generation Latino musical and dance talents cross-pollinating traditional rhythms and sounds with our modern urban soundtrack, London is now one of the key and developing influential cities on the Latin music world map.

EVENT
Event: Carnaval Del Pueblo
Date: Sunday 1 August 2010
Location: Parade from Elephant Road, Elephant & Castle, SE1 to free festival in Burgess Park, Albany Rd, Camberwell, SE5 0RJ

TIMES
Float Parade
12pm-3pm
NB: You can actually attend the preparation of the floats, before the parade starts, at Elephant Road, from 10am.

Procession
12pm-3pm
The float procession leaves Elephant Road at 12pm travelling through Walworth Road, Albany Road and reaching Burgess Park around 3pm
Nearest Tube station to Elephant & Castle (SE1)

Festival
10am-10pm
Burgess Park, Albany Rd, Camberwell, London, SE5 ORJ. Attractions start at midday, and there is easy access from Elephant and Castle underground and British Rail stations plus Bus numbers 36, 12, 171, 68, 68a, 45, 176, 63, 172.