XMAS CARNIVAL

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 3, Issue 671, 25 October 1933, Page 6

XMAS CARNIVAL

RESIDENTS' IDEAS MISS K. CARNAGH AN WINS GUINEA PRIZE IN COMPETITION USEFUL SUGGESTIONS MADE The recent competition conducted by the Advan.cem.ent Committee of tlihe Rotorua Borough Council in which a prize of one guinea was offered for the best suggestions for the improvement of ithe Christmas Carnival attracted a. large number of entries after the closing date had been extended for a week. IThe competition was won by Miss K. Carnachan while the committee has recommended that the entries sub.miiitted by TMCessrs J. D. Davys, E. Knowles land H. Daniels be highly commended. The various suggestions made covered a wide field and brought forward a number of ideas which should be of assistance to the committee in its programme. One suggestion, viz., the holding of a queen carnival over the holiday week, has lalready been adopted and preliminary arrangements in that connection are beinig nrade. The following is a synopsis of the various le'tters received: — The winner, Miss K. Carnachan made the following suggestions: For day-time attractions: — i(a) A Dark Town Band to parade the streetj every day, dressed in striped trousers, etc., playing fantastic instruments, or perhaps oi*dinary band instruments. To pl'a.y on the march all round the town. Clowning would add to the fun. (b) All shops to be decorated in some way all the week or suffer a small fine. (c) People to be encouraged to wear carnival dress and to smile even when greeted by strangers. Special constables to be appointed to enforce the rule "Smile During' Carnival W'eek." Anyone failing ito keep the rule to be fined ld. (d) Children t0 ride decorated tricycles all the week; a small reward to those riding th rough the streets every day. The children entering for this to report at a certain place each day, and the reporting place to be moved each day to a different street, to ensure a staady stream of people all round the town. For Night. — (a) The usual concert in the Town Square to conclude with dancing on the green. The first dance to be a set of 1'a.ncers t0 music by the Municipal Band. A necessary condition for the success of dancing on the green is the pre-arrangement of several official sets to set the ball rolling. (b) A moonlight excursion by launch; launches .to be lit with coloured lights, accompanied by a special Carrying the band, or a few stringed instruments on each launch. (c) A tramptrs' Treasure Hunt. Open Air Music Mr. J. D. Davys: (1) The provision of suitable open air mu;.ic. The requirements may be mct in eilher of two ways, namely: (a) A joint arrangement between +he borough and the Tourist Department whereby applications are advertised for ,the exclusive righis without payment to play orchestral music in the Governmcnt Gardens. The musicians to be required to play continuously at speeified inter vals. the mir.imum number of musicians would require to bo ■fixed, the musicians to have th. right to take up collections and this will constitute their sole remuneration. (b) The Unemployment. Board miight be approached to pay unemployment wagcs t0 a band of unemployed musicians during ithe period. (2) The main weakness in past (New Year processions appears to be two. (a) The lorries in the procession hav^ not been adequately supplied with streamers and confetti to thrmv amongst the passers-by. (h) SuffeTnt encouragement has not been olfered to owners of lorries to join in the procession. Ite.v (b) can be encoaraged only by offering substantial prizes supported with an advertisenient of the fact to be included in the wording of the Summer Carnival * advertising. Last year it cost about £15 to set up the prize winning lorry. A prize of at least £30, if possible higher, Should be aimed at, with a small second prize. The funds might be raised to do this by charging a pcr capita levy on every person using the M-otor Camp 6d (added on ito their charges) and by putting up a temporary habb-wire fence round the Town Square and making a nominal charge of Sd or 6d for -admission to all entertainments. The question at issue is a free carnival fairly efficient or a carnival trebly efficient at a triflimg, cost. (3) An endeavour might be made ito provide major attractions in the carnival programme suchr as: — • (a) A Carniv'a.l Night at the Blue Baths where swimmers o'f Domdndon fame are invited to contest — payment of substantial prizes to be offered representing a percentage of the takings — >so that no loss avill fall on any party. . (b) The Wrestling Associ'aition should be encouraged to stage a imajor wrestling contest as was done recently with wl'l known wrestlers. . (c) A Sunday Concert may be arranged showing a picture for one jhalf of the programme and engage islaiy, ifcwo high-class artists for the remainder, payment to be made, say, 50 per cent. to the picture provrietor and 50 per cent. to the " two" artists by charging 2s, ls 6d and ls and obtaining first-class outside talenit. • The artists, though engaged on a percentiage basis, should receive about £12. 10s each— a suffijeient sum, to attract high standard. (d) Applications might be invited by co-operation with ithe TOUX" ist Department for the "free and exiclusive right to run speed boats for hire on the lake, ftom say De-

cemher 20 to the end of Jlanuary. (e) A summer Golf Tournament I imdght be promoted to conrmenca about' January 10 — the trophy to be isubsidised from the takinigis during the Summer Carnival. (f) The Auckland Aero Club may be persuaded to stage a stunt aerial exhibition with" a number of 'iplanes if they were offered the tfree use of the aerodrome and the gate money and allorwied to fix thair lawn price for admissicn. t(g) Buses, taxis and cars plying for hire anay be given special concessions as to parking arelas during Christmas Week, in consideration of their entering the procession and suitably decorating their ifleet. Oh) An effort might be made to run a short but efficient fire-works idisplay for ten minutes on! New Year's Eve. (i) All borough motor lorries and •motor vehicles miigiht be required to enter the procession and if necess!ary the unemployed may be engaged to deeorate the same. (j) By larrangemient with the •Racing Club the council may ihe able to arrange with the Hamilton A. and P. Association — they ran a very successful rodeo at Hamilton — to run a first-class rodeo at Rotorua; the Racing Club t0 take a percentage of the gross takings as rent and all prizes to be on a pericentage basis. Last year some 3,000 aftended an amateur performance. A re'ally well managed sbov/ on the raceeourse should prove a great attraction. The underlyinig principles in the above suggestions are (a) that major attractions of a high standard should be aimed at; (b) That in all cases first-class talent should be paid for by offering a substantial percentaige of the takings t0 those engaged; (c) That the responsibility should so far as possible, be placecl on efficient priterprise to run the various entertainments with a view to releasing the voluntary assistance required' to a minimum; (d) The avoidance of loss to the borough. A Maori Welcome Mr. E. P. H. Knowles, Devon Street: First and foremost the general aim nrust be to individualise this rcsort by something which will be an adveTtisement in itself. To aehievie- this end, arrangemients should be made with the leading M'aori interests to have or muster 100 or more warriors in the old Maori style to inaugurate the procession in the same style that the warriors greeted a frien'dly tribe coming to see them. (,b) Regarding items in the procession itself, the various Goveirnment Department, s hiave been adveritising 'and doing their best to gain custom, why not ask them, (especially now that the bath fees have been absorbed by the Tourist Department) to use an allocation of their advertising money in supplying the nucleus of the procession, say six displays portraying the Various baths, etc. (c) That a few days prior to New Years Eve, the ongianiser get in touch with the campers at the Motor Camp, call a meetinig and asks them to form their own committee, fo put on a procession fromi the ciamp. (d) In regard to the inauguration of the main procession by Maori warriors, they could lead the procession "after "the ritual was over, but better still, as many Maori miaidens as possible could lead and sing their beautiful refrains. (e) If tbe committee is slhort of funds I would suggest running one or two balls during* the week also a children', s fancy dress ball. (f ) S'trenuous efforts must be made to popularise tbe regafta at New Year. (g) On a certain day or days in Carnival Week, pi*izes be given for the largest number of fish cauigiht per rod, heaviest catch and largest number of fish oa,ught on a launch. Queen Carnival Mr. H. Daniels: (a) That a Queen Carnival be inaugurated on December 23 or earlier if though advisiable. Candidates to be nominated from the following groups: Citizens, Tourists or Visitors, Public Service, County and M!aori. (b) That the respective Queen Committees meet and arrange an intensive enitertainment cjamPlaiig11 on behalf of candidates. ■ (c) That the camipaign end on (New Year's Eve, the crowninigi ceremony to take place at midnight on December 30. (d) Additional prize be given t0 tbe Queen candidate having the best processional display. Suggestion for a prize is that a number of votes could be added to the total of the candidate whose display was adjudged best. (e) That every 3d raised on behalf of the candidates count as one vote. In connection with the votes I suggesit tba.t a stimulus be given to business by tbe issuing of voiting tickets t0 all shopkeepers, who, in their tum, will issue ai vdting ticket for ievery two shilinigis and sixpense expended by a cash customer. Every ticket issued by a shopkeeper to have one-half the value of a vote colilecfced direotly by ithe Queeni's Comimittee, although in the aggregate all half votes for -any one Queen will count. (f) That the funds, ifj any, raised by.this means be expended by your committee in the furtherance of their •recently announced plans. for the improvement of Rotorua as a Spa and Tourist resont. Mr. W. J. Kurney: That your committee follow on a similar line as last year with' the following improvements : — , (1) A large- day-light procession tto enable photographs to be displayed in leading pictorialls tbroughlout New Zealand. (2) As many lights as possible ion the main route of the procession. (3) Greaiter prize mioney fo war-a-ant beitter displays. (4) The committee to personally anterview iboardinghouse prioprietors and try to install a spirit of interhouse displays. (5) By means of articles in our local paper to bring forcibly before the public of Rotorua their individlual and persoraal duty and x*espon'Sibility to enter into the carnival. Mjr. J. R: Alexander: An1 "Open Air" Dance Floor laid out in the Town Squai*e, platform to be 18ins from the ground. A charge of 3d per.couple for each dance. Music icould be supplied by either q large

laaniplafier or by the Town- Band. Mr. E. Pearce: Bowling Tournament — fleft-handed. Also ladies' bowling tournament. ilt would further add interest and amusem'ent if players were in fancy idress with paper bats; Mjr. C. Young. Procession could be improved by ■the inclusion of a large number of "big heads' 'and otber grotesque figures. lOhildren!'is Aflfcernoon: Apple and ibun eating competition: Improved by ereotrng a rail to keep the public away from competitors. A section •should also be roped off for the ehildren's fancy dress parade. Mr. E. Reid: (a) Fancy parade of vehicles for children. (b) Decorated motor cars parade for adults with a prize for the most original and a prize for the inost beautiful. . (c) Beauty competition for ladies. Open Band Contest Miss E. Schadick: (a) Open Band Contest, quick-step, anarching eompeition, etc. (b) A Whoopee Night at the Mjarine Parade — to have a Maypole, organised games, community sin.ging, dancing ion the lawn, band or orchestra in attendance, sweets, soft drinks and isupper stals, adequate seating accomimodation. Coloured lights, flags, istreamexs and Chinese lanterns would enhance the scene. (c) Monster Swimlmingi Camival in the Blue Baths. M-r. B. Gillick: A North Island Fbxtrot and North Island Waltzing Championship to be run over a period of two weeks; good prizes to. be offered. Mr. W. J. Berge, Queensland House: jOld. time coaching revival, the idea being to run a coach daily to places of interest. Mr. M. H. Hampson: To hoid a children's carnival during tbe two days before Christmas, more afefcention to be given to the purely Maori side of the carnival. With regard to the New! Year Carnival, the only additionial suggestion of importance, ibesides limiting the processions to one, is to suggest again that more use be made of the Mjaoris. Mr. E. Briscoe, Fenton Street: (a) To have the procession in dayliigjht; (b) To relieve the congestion on footpath at night, a young people's fancy-dress or mixed procession say at 10 p.m. lead by the Boys' Band. (c) To have some consideration for invalids in cbairs. Mr. W. M. Ashton, Ruihi Street: That a design in electrie bulhs, viz. "Hail! 1934" be construoted and that on the first stroke of miidnight all the lights in the Square be switched off and the design switched on simultaneously, "Sporting Visitor": Hiave a big Children's Fancy Daylight Dance, ending the day with a Christmas Tr.ee in the Square, also a few mystery parcels for adults. (b) Children's concert, sports, etc., and near the final night, a dress paraide, •the dress to represent say jam and pickle labels or any article with a brightly coloured laibel, a sniall prize •t0 be igiiven for best imitaition. (c) Maori children's concert. An Aerial Broadcast Mr. D. W. M. Tapp. Pescription of Rotorua and the surrounding district from th'e air. A portahle telephone radio transmitter could be instaJled in the "Miss Arawa" or laoay plane capable of carrying a pilot and an announcer. A short wave receiver would be installed in ithe Town Square or whereever other attractions would be in progress. The output of the short wave receiver would be coupic d to any public laddress system capable of supplying suffieient power. The installation could also be used for other novel purposes such as a description of the sensations experienced during "stunt" flying etc. Mr. H. Tarr, Tarewa Road: Father Nepture. My suggestion is that on an evening decided upon Fiather Neptune and 'his wife Andromeda with the wihole of his court coatnposed of say six bears and two police1men to be taken out in a launch to about 400 or 500 yards from the shore with a smal charge of gelignite or other loud ddi^onatinigi explosive lashed to la. piece of wood which' couM be thrown overboard so that on the charge exploding t(he. launch couVd mlake for the wharf where they could be met by the Town Band and march t0 the Town Square to b,e welcom. d by his Worship the Mayor. After the welcome declare the count open and let Neptune hoild swiay for one hour. Mrs. E. Carkeek, Armidale: (1) That there be brighter lights placed at the Government Grounds •entrance at Arawa Street, also Fenton Street. (2) That more marshaflls he lappointed for the procession'. (3) A battle of flowers would be a novelty in Rotorua. As hotel and iboardinghouse keepers have little time for outside interests during tih.e scason, why not ask us to subsci*ibe to the expenses of say, three lorries and drivers, to he decorated and laden with flowers. Mr. B. M. Keane: (1) A "stilt" race for juniors; (2) A donkey race; (3) A "jazz race." Mr. S. E. Shaiv^ 84 Ranolf Streit: (1) "Crossing the Line": Could be held in conjunction with swimiming carnival. Candidates for initiation to be seleoted preferably from aimong w.ell knOwn local athletes, who will (unknown to the audience) com-e prepared. (2) Lolly Man: To be held in connection with children's gala. (3) Xmas Treasure Ship: The services of some motor vehicle c'o.uild prob'ahly be isecured. This would be rigged out in the form of a boat with a Christmas Tree for a main rnast. Mr. J. Briscoe, Fenton Street: The afternoon of Wednesday, December 27, Children's fancy dress procession lead by Boys' Band, lsrt, 2nd and 3rd prizes. T'o be f ollowed by an exhibition of fancy dancing by the children-, 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes. Mr. F. E. Stewart, 3 Amohiau Street: An "All Nations" Fancy Dress Old Time Ball, with the Municipal Band's Dance Orchestra. Mr. .A. J. Iles: English and Maori Races. The two figures .to be standing with arms round each other, showing the two races as living in harmony. (b) The Maori and the moa: A fully tattooed Maori man clothed in suitable niative cdstume and carrying a taiaha or >

other weapon. The man to be leading or riding a large moa. (c) In addition to the daylight parade, the night pariaide to be lit with powerful flood. lights ait suitable spots.in the march. Cr. L. Woolliams : '(a) Encouragie private decorated cars. (b) Early canvass re donations. Mrs. Andrew Miller, 118 Arawa Street That some of the Lake Trips be revived, perlhaps to Hamurana via Mbkoia Island, or through tbe Channel to Lake Rotoiti, where tbe. passengers could lunch and picnic iat one of the numerous heaches or visiit Okere.