Tom Ford, Donatella Versace, and the late Gianni Versace and Alexander McQueen all made names for themselves in fashion capitals literally and proverbially thousands of miles away from Trinidad and Tobago. But there, during Trinidad Carnival 2024, the Rogue carnival band danced through the streets of Port of Spain wearing chic masquerade costumes named in their honor.
Every carnival season a team of fashion and production designers develop an aesthetic for a new motif that carnival troupes embody during the two-day parade. This year, Jules Sobion, Rogue’s band leader, decided on “En Vogue”—a nod to the aforementioned designers, whose work has graced the pages of Vogue countless times, and also to the Oakland-born R&B-and-soul trio that rose to prominence in the ‘90s.
Masqueraders who jump-up with Rogue, are loyal to Caesar's Army, a brand that established a reputation in the Soca community for producing a series of immersive J'Ouvert events and festivals. This year, Sobion was committed to rebounding from a challenging 2023; supply chain issues led to erroneous costume sizing. "I kept thinking about ‘V’ because, well, we think in Roman numerals,” Sobion says, adding that 2024 was Rogue’s fifth year on the road. As he speaks on the phone from his office in Port of Spain, a steel orchestra practices outside for Panorama 2024, the national steelpan competition. “They’re playing the same song over and over,” he says. “I don't know if it’s driving me crazy or driving me to be more passionate.”
Caesar's Army, which partnered with Tribe, a Trinidad and Tobago carnival stalwart, leans heavily into the uniform aesthetic. Sobion desired a theme that celebrated a milestone year and signified overcoming setbacks. “And I think, En Vogue! It triggered the lyrics in my mind, ‘free your mind, and the rest will follow.’”
What ensued was a new partnership with David Dewer, a veteran costume maker from Diego Martin, a town twenty minutes north of the Queen’s Park Savannah, the epicenter of carnival. Dewer studied Sobion’s vision boards, selecting trimmings like pearls and feathers. He was especially drawn to jewel tones such as amethyst and turquoise, which were heavily used in Ford’s fall 2022 collection. “Tom used a lot of unconventional colors that men wouldn't particularly wear,” Dewer tells Vogue via a WhatsApp call. He was recuperating from an overnight block party and organizing costume pick-ups simultaneously. “It was really out-of-the-box of what you're accustomed to seeing, and I wanted to bring that sort of element of Ford to the costume.”
One section of costumes Dewer designed was reminiscent of the Harlem Renaissance. A rose-colored peplum silhouette was outfitted with dozens of pearls, gloves, and a veiled headpiece with a floating necklace. Natalie Fonrose designed an ornate, gemmed costume in honor of Alexander McQueen. Dedications to Gianni and Donatello Versace, designed by Dewer, round out the collection.“I came across this appliqué that I kind of resembles one of the patterns that Donnatella used back in the day,” he says. “I decided to twist it into a form that fits carnival.”
On Carnival Tuesday masqueraders wearing Donatella wore black and gold bodysuits with fringe sleeves; their fire-like wings shimmered under the hot sun. Gianni, the menswear look, paid homage to the revolutionary core of Caesar’s Army: Goldenrod shorts paired with a tailored, one-sleeved suit jacket. A black beret and a faux-leather holster finished the costume. “We had to be more outstanding than last year,” Sobion says of his Trinidad Carnival 2024 efforts. “So, for the first time, I'm going to attempt for my carnival band to be the voguest band on the road.”
