It was a competition held in Fort de France to crown the reines (queens) of Carnaval. There were three different categories: Reine Mère (for older women), Mini Reine (for little kids), and simply Reine (for younger women). There were five or six competitors in each category.
First, the girls and women had to process out in tenue traditionnelle, or traditional Martiniquais dresses. Except they didn't process, really, so much as dance. There was a live band in the background, playing some standard catchy Caribbean-ish accompaniment, and the girls all had to come out and strut their stuff (whilst fanning themselves with their oh-so-Martiniquais évantails) as best they could in time to the music. Their outfits were judged on style, accessorization, and presentation.
Here's a picture of the older women lined up with their tenue traditionnelle. My camera's not that great, and they were all moving so quickly, so it was hard to get good action shots.
Then, there was the travesti portion of the competition, or the Carnaval costumes. People don't mess around with Carnaval here. It's serious business. And the ornate, elaborate, multicolored outfits the girls had constructed proved it. The theme was Martinique; according to the announcer, each costume was supposed to make you think, "C'est ça, la Martinique!"
The outfits were judged on creativity, originality, adherence to the theme, and audience response (ie, the loudness of the cheers. Very scientific). Most of the costumes had incorporated some kind of palm tree, flower, or tropical fruit. Here's a picture of the girl who won the Mini Reine competition. She dressed up as solar panels and a windmill, both of which you can see dotting the countryside when you drive through the more rural parts of Martinique.
Of course, the entire spectacle was peppered with musical song and dance numbers in the interludes, from baton twirlers to hip-hoppers to flamenco-esque productions. Two male performers dressed in drag, dancing and lip-synching to random Martiniquais songs, garnered the most applause. Even grown women in their forties were shrieking at the men-turned-women like teenage fangirls.
Parts of the show were in Creole so we didn't understand what was going on a lot of the time. And it being Martinique and all, the competition finished an hour and a half after it was scheduled to. After having sat in the same chair for five hours, we were practically snoring by the results ceremony. Still, though, I'm glad I went. It was, at the very least, a sneak peek of what's to come in the next few weeks!
