As part of a series about Kanaval, produced by New Orleans based producer Eve Abrams for WWNO, Abrams – who was a producer on the team that produced the Kanaval documentary, presents a conversation with New Orleans’ resident Al Grandoit (pictured above/photo by Eve Abrams) during a walk along the kanaval parade route in New Orleans, in February, 2020.
Grandoit was born in Boston, to Haitian immigrant parents. He spent several years growing up in Port au Prince with family, and he’s lived in New Orleans for 12 years. “I fell in love with the city, the culture,” he says, about moving to New Orleans. “It was just amazing to see the connections with Haiti.”
Dressed up as Toussaint Louverture, the leader of the Haitian revolution, Grandoit talks about the revolution and the spirit of kanaval. Listen to the story below.