It was an evening of pomp and splendour, at the media launch of this year’s Cape Town Carnival. The launch, held at Nasdak on Thursday, saw carnival performers giving a sneak preview of what to expect this year.

The iconic event on the Mother City’s cultural calendar celebrates its 15th year this year. Scores of residents are expected to flock to the Greenpoint Fan Walk yet again.

This year’s event will be observed under the theme wowZA!

To highlight the upcoming milestone, Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis credited the organisers, and all involved for their resilience over the last decade and a half.

“Images of our carnival go all over the world. The Rio Carnival is not the only one in town anymore. The Cape Town Carnival is out there and attracting people to our city and putting Cape Town on the map. All of the effort that goes into the creative industries, into the float building and so much more is great for our city economy,” said Hill-Lewis.

The free event takes place on 15 March 2025 from 6pm, which will see the city’s streets come alive with song, dance, vibrant colors, and more.

“This is an important event on the cultural calendar of the City of Cape Town. We love events that bring people out of their homes, sharing public spaces together, enjoying Cape Town together, with one another,” added Hill-Lewis.

Organisers say the carnival has played host to 500 000 spectators, 150 floats, 25 000 performers and 30 000 costumes and accessories over the past decade and a half.

“This year sees a bit of a switch-up for us. We have got a lot of special guests on float. We’ve got the entire squad of the Stormers. We can’t wait. Firefighters, watch out. Of course we will always have our firefighters and we will also celebrate some of our other emergency services,” said founder and chair of the board of trustees of the Cape Town Carnival, Rachel Jafta.

Other attractions include performances by Paxton Fielies, YoungstaCPT, The Drag Cartel’s very own float and more.