Every year, they surprise with new fantasies and decorations, and they add that touch of style that has made them, over time, a fundamental part of the carnival. This year, the opening speech of the Arrecife Carnival will be given by them, the designers, people who have been "participating in the event for many years in a very important way, and are behind the aesthetics, the costumes and the design".
This is what the Councilor for Festivities of the capital, Encarna Páez, announced in La Voz at the end of last January. And now, in the run-up to the starting signal of the carnival festivities, the names of the three town criers are already known: Jaime Romero, Oswaldo Machín, Juan Rojas and Toño Aparicio.
A "basic" job for the party
The dressmakers will arrive on the stage of this Carnival to the sound of Celia Cruz with "illusion" as their banner.
Romero tells La Voz that it was the mayor, Astrid Pérez, who called him personally to communicate the decision, which was initially that he would be the only town crier. "But in the end we decided that it would be much nicer if everyone who could come came."
Although he recognizes that he is "more of a backstage person than a stage person" and that showing his face makes his "legs tremble", he faces the request with emotion, because "the recognition of your work is always well received."
A job that, in his opinion, is "basic" for the party: "All Carnival events need designers."
A "nice gesture" that should go further
Machín says that after receiving the news, he felt "very good", since it is a "nice gesture" towards one of the actors that give "quality" to the festivity.
"The people who are behind, both designers and the rest of the workers, are the ones who make the work go well," says the town crier.
For this reason, he defends that this recognition "should not only remain in a proclamation", but should serve as a starting point for "more thought" to be given to the dressmakers, and to the entire industry that they promote thanks to their work.
Suits made "with a lot of love"
In the case of Rojas, it was his colleague Jaime who communicated the offer to him and his niece who confirmed it. Like his counterpart, he shares the enthusiasm for the opportunity.
"I have been sewing since 1968, when there were only two of us, Nina Martín and I, and everything was done with a needle," recalls the dressmaker.
Despite his long career, humility overflows in his words: "I don't like to give myself importance, when I started the spectacular floats of today were not made, they were normal suits... But yes, made with a lot of love".
A love that, most likely, will be transmitted through the speech of these three designers on February 10 in the Parque Islas Canarias, where the Arrecife Carnival 2023 will be inaugurated.
* From La Voz we have tried to contact the third town crier, Toño Aparicio, but it has been impossible.