Hello beautiful LDG Carnavaleros!!!

I can't believe we have just 5 days until our awesome Carnaval Parade presentation!!!  Now that we have our costumes and accessories, makeup design, headdresses and started practicing outdoors, the excitement is building! Everyone did a fantastic job at our last outdoor rehearsal - thank you so much!

LDG Carnaval T-shirts are SOLD OUT! Thank you so much to our T-shirt sales team led by the amazing Tamar Besson

This Saturday 5/23 is our Dress Rehearsal where it's all about performing and sharing the joy and energy with audiences that will surround us. Remember Dudley's direction to look up, smile and dance like the whole world is watching!!!  One of the beautiful things about parading is that we get to perform these dances several times, getting better and better each time - that's not something we experience when we do one time stage performances.

At this point in our rehearsal process, we want to focus on the big picture.  When we maintain evenly spaced lines and rows and everyone is moving in the same direction; that is an impressive sight to see from afar.  We are a wonderfully diverse, multi-level, intergenerational group, and I am so proud of what we have co-created.  So let's celebrate your hard work, enjoy these remaining days, and allow yourselves to share your joy of dance with the world!!!!

Preparing for our big day... 

If you have not done so already, please dance the choreography at least once all the way through in your full costume.  This is really important so that you can get a feel for how to work that fringe!  Please be super careful that the fringe doesn't get caught on anything.   

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LAST OUTDOOR REHEARSAL – Mandatory Dress Rehearsal!!!  

SATURDAY 5/23 12:00pm-2:00pm ~ Visitacion Valley Middle School, 1971 Visitacion Ave., SF, CA  94134

Filming Day!!!  Our talented film-maker/editor Alma Herrera Pazmino will be filming the entire rehearsal.  We will be starting and ending on time.

Please wear the shoes you will be dancing in, your makeup, headdress, so we can make sure everything stays in place. Bring extra safety pins and bobby pins just in case.  

Proposed Agenda:

12:00pm - Dudley and Elizabeth will check in with Section Leaders.

12:10pm - Section Leaders will huddle with their sections and then get into placements for warmups. 

12:20pm - We will do our warmups

12:40pm - Section Leaders will ensure their sections lines and rows are evenly spaced.  We will play the entire playlist and parade with transitions and formation changes, like we did last week.  Dudley and I would like to practice too.  Let's cheer each other on! 

*Our Pacing Monitors, Water Monitors and Banner Holders will observe this first run-through. 

1:00pm - All of our Monitors will take their positions to join us to rehearse.  We will do another round of the entire Playlist and our pacing monitors will practice directing us to speed up, slow down, and maintain evenly spaced lines/rows.  We will try to do two full run throughs.

1:30pm-1:45pm - Closing Remarks, Last Questions....

LDG CARNAVAL PLAYLIST:  Like we rehearsed this past Sunday, the playlist will be played in a loop throughout the parade; and we will rotate the sections so that each section has an opportunity to be in the front.  Our Elders and Tiny Dancers do not rotate.

• Rie Y Llora

• Mi Swing Es Tropical (Sections Rotate - front section goes back in between the rows, while other sections continue traveling forward).

• Vem Sambar

• Funk That Mambo (Sections Rotate - Spirit Tunnel - front section unites at center and travels back; other sections split creating a tunnel and they travel forward)

• Vivito y Coleando

• American Sueno (Sections Rotate - front section goes to back in between the rows, while other sections continue traveling forward).

LDG PARADE CONTINGENT LINEUP:

OnLok/30th Street Senior Center Banner

LDG Banner

SOUND TRUCK

Section #1

Section #2

Section #3

Section #4

Section #5

OnLok 30th Street Senior Center Dancers

Tiny Dancers Section and Chaperones

VOLUNTEER MONITORS:

Saturday is also Orientation/Rehearsal for our Parade Monitors.  

Their orientation will be led by Nicole Phillips, Pacing Monitor Leader; and December Martin, Water Monitor Leader.

Here's what the different monitors do:

Pacing Monitors – they help dancers pace themselves and direct us to walk faster or slow down to ensure there are no gaps between sections.  They will help people get out of the way during your transitions and will help you keep your lines/rows and spacing.  Please follow their instructions.

Water Monitors – they help hydrate dancers without interfering with choreography. They do not rotate with the sections - they remain in their positions to ensure everyone is taken care of.  

Sound Truck Safety Monitors stay in touch with the truck driver at all times, alerting them to slow down if the contingent is falling behind (particularly during the pinwheel section).  They alert the Front Banner holders to slow down if they walk too far ahead of the Sound Truck. 

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SUNDAY - MAY 24, 2026 - CARNAVAL PARADE BEGINS AT 9:30AM

Our Staging Location is: 2400-2406 Bryant Street @ 22nd Street, SF, CA

LDG is Contingent #37.  Please arrive at our staging location between 9:30AM-10AM. We will take group photos with everyone before the parade starts, warm up together, and huddle in our pre-parade circle.

The Parade Live Broadcast begins at 10:00AM and that is when the Parade groups start moving quickly - If you arrive at the staging location after 10:00am; the group will have moved away from their initial lineup location. 

Please do not bring any valuables with you to the Parade.  This year we do not have a float, so unfortunately there is no storage for any items.  

Please bring your ID, some cash, safety pins, and sew a small pouch to the inside of your costume to store these items, or use a travel style fanny pack that can hide underneath your costume.    

PARADE ROUTE / MAP

The parade route is approximately 1.5 miles.  Official start is at 24th Street and Bryant Street. The parade proceeds on 24th Street to Mission Street; turns right on Mission St. and turns right on 15th Street where it ends near Harrison Street.

After the Parade Sound Truck driver will pull over between 15th and 16th near Harrison and JK Sound Company will come to remove the Sound System.  

AFTERPARTY!!!!   Everyone is invited!!!

If you'd like to contribute to beverages for our After Party - please drop them off at ODC Wednesday through Friday this week.   Dudley Flores and Monika are coordinating our afterparty and we could use volunteers to help us clean up afterwards. Thank you!!!

Our Post-Carnaval Celebration will be at the ODC Commons, 351 Shotwell Street, San Francisco, CA.  Please join us after the Parade and let’s celebrate our hard work this Carnaval Season!!!!

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PARADE LOGISTICS:

There is NO PARKING in the staging area.  Please plan accordingly and car-pool.  Most streets within a two-block radius around the staging areas, the parade route and festival site will be marked as tow zones - so please be careful where you park.

Street Closures on Carnaval Sunday May 24 2026

PARADE PACE:

This is a forward moving parade.  There is no stopping to perform.  Parade Staff will set the pace and our pacing monitors will help you keep a steady pace throughout the parade.   If a Parade Marshal asks you to speed up or slow down, we have to cooperate.  If we keep our spacing and pacing constant, we can avoid gaps.  

RESTROOMS:

There are portable restroom facilities along Bryant Street and on the Parade Route. FOR INFORMATION ABOUT CARNAVAL PARADE, FESTIVAL & RELATED ACTIVITIES, PLEASE VISIT: www.carnavalsanfrancisco.org

MAKE TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS:

• Consider public transportation

• Pre-arrange carpools and meeting points

• If you arrive early enough on parade day, you can find parking near the END of the parade route (near ODC) then walk to the contingent meeting point.

• Pack make-up wipes, or blotting paper, Bobby Pins and Safety Pins :-)

SELF-CARE:

• Please get plenty of rest this week - especially on Saturday night.

• Drink plenty of water all week - don't wait until the day of the parade to hydrate.

• The parade will be loud. If you’re sensitive to loud sounds, please bring earplugs.

• Have a good healthy (protein-packed) breakfast the morning of the Parade. You will be dancing for hours.

• Wear sunscreen (even if overcast) and follow our makeup tips so your make-up stays in place.

• Come fully dressed in your costume to the Parade Lineup. There are no changing facilities.

• Please bring cough drops, hard candy or anything you need to take care of yourself.

DURING THE PARADE

• Water Monitors will be carrying water for you so please hydrate!  

• Parade Pacing Monitors will be staged alongside the first row of each section.

• PACE yourself, keep traveling forward in a slow steady pace to avoid gaps

• If you forget choreography, keep moving and smiling :-).

• CONNECT WITH THE AUDIENCE, CHEER, SMILE!!  

There will be lots of photographers and videographers, so don't forget to perform for the cameras :-)

THE TV CAMERA AREA AND JUDGING STAND:

KPIX will be broadcasting live from Harrison and 24th Street – just a couple of blocks from where we begin.

The official Judging Stand this year is on Mission Street near 23rd Street in the Grandstand Seating Area.  This is where we will turn up the heat for the Judges so stay in character the entire time.  The audience will see your upper body mostly, your facial expressions, facings and your arms - so embody the joy and powerful energy of each dance and share your dance spirit with the audience. :-)

This is a juried parade and we will be competing in the World/Fusion Category. The criteria being judged is: Overall Presentation, Carnaval Spirit, Dance Technique, Choreography, Music, Float and Costumes.  

We got this!!! Viva Carnaval!!!

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I truly hope that you enjoy this last week of excitement and preparation.  I am already thinking about how I will miss you all after this flurry of activity is over.    Let's take some time to express gratitude for our new and old friends who have gathered for this special journey during what has been another very challenging year.... 

I realize that there are so many challenges facing us these days, on a personal level and as a community; and that it might feel like this is not the time to celebrate joy when there is so much work to do.  But how can we create the world we want to live in, if we cannot imagine it first?  How do we have faith that we can heal if we don't experience the resilience of our spirit? Dancing in community allows us to embody transcendence in a unique way that reminds us that we are all connected.  And this embodiment enables us to re-charge and re-energize us so we can face whatever life brings, because we remember that we are not alone.  So, on Carnaval Day, let’s show the world the healing energy we can co-create when we prioritize joy, radiant light, positive energy, inclusivity, love and gratitude.

From Many ~ We Are ONE

A Radiant Celebration of CommUNITY

with love and gratitude,

Elizabeth and Dudley