So perhaps I’m a little biased when it comes to 3canal. After all, they’ve been CFR’s official house band since 2005, and the bond is especially strong around where Carnival is concerned.

Caribbean Free Radio’s very first podcast was recorded in 3canal’s offices amidst the madness of Carnival Friday 2005, and last year 3canal and I teamed up to record the cut+clear carnival podcast, a six-part series examining various themes relating to the evolution of Trinidad and Tobago’s national festival.

We’d planned a reprise this year, but my work schedule and Haiti post-earthquake visit got in the way. So, as a substitute of sorts, 3canal passed me a recording they did for a local radio station previewing their 2010 Carnival show and releases. You can listen to it using the player below:

If you haven’t yet seen the 3canal Jam-It Show, I’d suggest you do so, and soon, as it runs only till Saturday (February 13). Since their move from the Little Carib Theatre to Queen’s Hall a few years ago, 3canal’s shows have been uniformly spectacular, especially in terms of the visual and musical production; but the 3canal Jam-It Show brings the theatrical aspects that made the Little Carib shows so delightful and special back to centre stage, making for a terrific—and terrifically funny—production.

Diehard PNM supporters should make an extra-special effort to attend!

In #33 I catch up with Elisha Bartels and Nicholai LaBarrie, two alumni of the Lilliput Theatre Company back in Trinidad for the company’s 30th anniversary celebrations, and play a few tracks from Nicholai’s new album.

You can listen to this podcast in any of the following ways:
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Links:
Sweet Trini’s Urban Folktales – Elisha’s blog | Folger Shakespeare Library – Elisha’s acting gig | WAMU’s Kojo Nmamdi Show – Elisha’s writing gig | honeythedogmusic.com - Nicholai’s music site | Oval House Theatre – Nicholai’s day job | Thanks to 3canal for letting us use their space for this interview – now go buy a copy of Jab Jab Say!

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We always appreciate it as well when you vote for us at Podcast Alley or check out Caribbean Free Photo, our photoblog.

Music played on this show:
“Rock Yuh Boy”, “Army of One”, “Reasonin’” and “Blue Water” by Nicholai LaBarrie from the album Superhero to Many Small Insects, all available as free downloads at Honey the Dog Music.

Technorati Tags: caribbean, caribbean+music, rapso, theatre, children’s+theatre, trinidad

CFR inaugurates its “Theatre” category with a longer show than usual, in which I chat with Trinidadian actor Michael Cherrie, recently of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, about his craft and career. This episode features monologues from Blue/Orange, Othello, Master Harold and the Boys and The Dragon Can’t Dance, a few of which contain OBSCENE LANGUAGE–you have been warned! Tune in as well to find out why Michael owes me 50% of his earnings.

Happy Birthday, Wendell Manwarren!

And if you’ve been liking what we’re doing here, please Vote for Caribbean Free Radio at Podcast Alley. Help us make the Top 50 this month!

You can listen to this podcast in any of the following ways:
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Links:
Tortuga Rum Company – makers of the world-famous Tortuga Rum Cakes. Order yours online today! | Caribbean Free Photo – CFR’s photoblog

Novels & plays mentioned in this podcast:
Blue/Orange by Joe Penhall | Master Harold…and the Boys by Athol Fugard | The Dragon Can’t Dance by Earl Lovelace | The Final Passage by Caryl Phillips | Small Island : A Novel by Andrea Levy | The Lonely Londoners (Longman Caribbean Writers Series) by Sam Selvon | The Joker of Seville & O Babylon!: Two Plays by Derek Walcott

This podcast was edited using Propaganda, by MixMeister Technology. Stay tuned for a review of my experience with Propaganda!