RTL Today – Cancellation of carnival festivities: The province of Luxembourg between wisdom and resignation
The window of optimism that seems to be opening on the front of the health crisis comes a little too late for carnivals in the province of Luxembourg. Cancellations followed. Some prefer to play the watch by postponing their meeting, others adapt their format. But behind the masks, it’s grimace soup.
the Pat’ Bastogne Carnival was the first to draw in November so as not to incur excessive costs. The announcement of the cancellation of the festivities during the weekend of February 27 was one of the first in a long series.
That from Arlon happened a few days ago. “It is clear that the Covid-19 is still part of our lives. It is a reality with which we must juggle. We are also in the unknown concerning the health recommendations and the entry into force of the barometer since Friday January 28 for the world of events and culture. Will the color of this one change in the next few weeks? We don’t know. Today, this uncertainty pushes us to make this decision”, explained Numa Glesener, the president of the Arlon Carnival Committee.
“The Carnival of Arlon represents an incalculable number of hours of work, but also and above all a very significant financial risk. During the first cancellation in 2020, we had to honor the costs already incurred before the start of the epidemic. In full transparency, the financial losses amounted to around €70,000Numa Glesener continued.Fortunately, thanks to good management, the carnival of Arlon is not threatened with extinction. We are there and we stay there. In 2023, we will certainly see more clearly as to a complete organization of our event.“
Other smaller cities such as Nassogne, Barvaux-sur-Ourthe, Saint-Hubert, Hotton or La Roche-en-Ardenne, a carnival hotspot, have taken the same decision.
OTHERWISE, THERE IS A CARNIVAL… IN AUGUST!
That of martelange, scheduled for March 6, is also going by the wayside. The decision was taken by mutual agreement between the municipality and the organizing committee, whose first idea was to offer a lighter version of the event. The protocol, which remains very heavy, has ruined the last hopes of the happy lads of Martelange.
Walk in Famenne, she, postponed the 62and edition of the Carnival of Grosse Biesse initially on the menu for February 27. See you during the Ascension weekend on May 28 and 29. “The spirit and symbolism will nonetheless be present at the end of February,” underline the organizers. “Each carnival group will have the opportunity to decorate a shop window in the city centre.”
And for the more cautious or the more cautious, there is still the Carnival of the Sun at Houffalize Sunday, August 7. As long as the virus takes a few months off…