This year, she has been crowned San Francisco Carnaval’s teen queen with an electrifying performance in the junior king and queen contest as I mentioned in the previous post. After the event, she and her family graciously gave photographers like me some time for portraits. Showing a patience and grace beyond her years, Cassandra posed with a cheerful smile on her face.

The way she had danced like a trained ballerina, it was a surprise for me to learn from her that she does not have any formal ballet training. She is in eighth grade and I really wish one of the numerous dance companies in San Francisco Bay area would take her under their wing. There was this slogan on the mural in Everett Middle school lobby – “Follow your dreams”.

Follow your dreams Cassandra! I wish you all the luck.

April 25, 2008 An Update
(courtesy Colleen Tiffenson from Mas Makers, a leading Carnival group of SF bay area ):
Cassandra is a long time student of noted Bay Area Choreographer Linda Johnson and attends the Oakland School of Performing Arts. She is scheduled to be part of two dance camps this summer at UC Berkeley and Alvin Ailey in NY. As a member of Mas Makers performing cast, her talent is recognized and she is receiving guidance in the pursuit of her dreams.

The event had its moments – a perky six year old dressed in bright green takes the stage, starts and then freezes seeing the massive stage and lights. “Do you want to dance again?” Shake of the head indicates negative. Three requests to dance follow but no luck; kiddo wants to come back to the shelter of the side of stage.

After two more performances by others, the kid comes on encouraged by parent and under flashes of the camera, dances graceful movements to a perfect rhythm, looking to his parent for approval from time to time. The music finishes and happy and buoyed by the dance, he returns thrilled with his performance. Everyone on this stage is a winner for me.

I remember when I first went to recite poetry on a big stage with lights and hundreds of eyes watching me in the lighted up auditorium. There was no lectern to lean on and my legs were shaking uncontrollably but with hands clasped behind my back, I put up a brave front, recited my poem and somehow moved into a different zone. When my poem finished and the clapping sound brought me back to earth, it was a moment of relief that the recital went well without any lines being bungled. Yes, I could certainly understand what the six-year old was going through initially.

A good rhythm and dancing never fails to have my feet tapping. If I were not behind the camera, I think I would be dancing.

Though there were many stellar performances, I really loved Cassandra’s performance. She was the first participant on the roster for teen queen and she had a charismatic brilliance. Moving very gracefully, her steps flowed like a trained ballerina and those included an air split.

My Congratulations to all the youngsters and to their parents who provide the all necessary support and encouragement for them to follow their dreams. Much goes on behind the scenes to put up any such event; kudos to Roberto Hernandez and Karol An Meier for their loving dedication and the legacy they impart to these kids for years to come.

Some portraits follow…more photos of all the participants may be seen in my event galleries .

Last night, I was at 1015 Folsom in San Francisco to photograph the Carnaval King and Queen contest. It turned out that the format had been changed this year and we would only see the finalists of a preliminary competition held earlier. Wish I knew earlier.

Everett and Kellita of Hot Pink Feathers were crowned King and Queen of San Francisco Carnaval 2008 after a scintillating performance. Here are some portraits of Everett and Kellita from the event. More may be seen in my Carnaval galleries to be updated sometime this week.

Everett all smiles: “what a feeling to be the king”…

the bubbly, energetic queen Kellita with a big smile…

Posing for a portrait after the crowning…

Savoring the moment…

All hail the king and queen…

My congratulations to Everett and Kellita, the new royalty of Carnaval!

I lifted my camera, smiled and waved to him gesturing if I could take a picture. He smiled back and nodded and posed as I clicked a picture. Scanning both sides for oncoming traffic, I crossed the road to compose tighter and then clicked a couple of pictures. I wanted to ask his name and address so I could send him his picture but he spoke no English and I spoke ‘poquito’ Spanish. We spoke by gestures; I would show him what I wanted and he followed my gestures.

After shooting some colorful street portraits while he played some flute and guitar for me and my camera, I handed him one of my cards hoping he would email me but he didn’t. At times like these, I feel I should learn more of Spanish; even though a smile always conveys happiness and one’s good intentions. If you know this musician, let me know ‘cos his portrait certainly made my day.