A Visual Guide To The Sights, Sounds & Celebration Of Movie World's Carnivale

Every so often, Warner Bros. Movie World, on the Gold Coast, undergoes a transformation from theme park to themed park, with regular celebrations such as the Halloween-centric Fright Night and year-end White Christmas dotting the calendar to add some topical variety to its mix of permanent rides and attractions.

One such celebration — to which the park's evenings are currently in thrall — is the revelry of Carnivale, which draws its inspiration from etymologically and ideologically similar events such as Carnival, Carnaval and Mardi Gras (though, oddly, not the Carnivale TV show), many of which were popularised through the French-speaking quarters of the American South (New Orleans/Louisiana, primarily), to turn the park into a living, breathing cavalcade of colour, cooking, celebration, performance and parading at night.

Live musicians roam the streets, brass bands and marching drummers belting out jazzy tunes while, in other pockets of the sprawling festival, troupes and troubadours perform to passing crowds, the smells of Southern cooking — jambalaya, gumbo, fish fry, pulled-pork rolls, smoked ribs and BBQ, a freaking bacon station — wafting through the air as jesters, stilt-walkers, fire-twirlers, acrobats and Looney Tunes alike provide mid-park spectacle across the evening.

It all culminates with the big one — the nightly Parade — for which the evening's attendees line the park's Main Street, dancing and clapping (well, in theory; last night's crowd was a little 'too cool' for it at times) as a ream of floats and performers fall slave to the rhythm for a 15-minute climax that leaves the park couched in deafening cheers as streamers fall from the sky, pyrotechnics explode, and everyone leaves — very, very slowly, on account of Queensland drivers' objectively bad merging manners (don't try and deny it; I damn well live here) — with all senses sated.

Take a look at our array of pics from last night's celebration below, then head to Movie World's website if you're keen on sussing last-minute ticket's for tonight's shindig. (Carnivale will also be held this Saturday, 11 April, though pre-sale allocation is sold out for that event.)

carnivale: warner bros. movie world, thursday, 9 april

All pics by Jazz Minogue and Mitch Knox (click to enlarge).