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Tobago moko jumbie vows to keep tradition alive

DANCING on three-foot stilts through jubilant crowds at Carnival comes naturally to Simone Scipio-Briggs. The Carnbee-born mother of five, who has mesmerised spectators with her grace and endearing spirit over the years, is perhaps Tobago’s most prominent female moko jumbie. In fact, her portrayal of the beloved folklore character extends way beyond Carnival and culture. She has performed at corporate events, weddings, christenings and even funerals. Last year, Scipio-Briggs, 41, was part of the Tobago contingent that travelled to the UK for the World Travel Market. “I would have been the moko jumbie on display at the Trinidad and Tobago booth in a costume designed by Marcus Des Vignes that represented what Tobago has to offer,” she told WMN on February 18. “It was an amazing experience being a cultural ambassador and sharing a piece of Tobago with the world.” Scipio-Briggs, who became the Tobago Tourism Agency Ltd’s tourism business development officer in January 2023, said the position has enabled her to view such international events in a different light. “I now have a deeper understanding of visitors wanting to experience experiential tourism. Visitors want to see and experience life as a local and it was an honour to be one of the faces that shared Tobago with the world.” During covid19, the Signal Hill resident also began tutoring young people in her spare time. “When the country was on lockdown, because I have five children, my house became the yard where children found themselves during the day. My children are also into the moko jumbie and they tried to get their friends involved in it. “Because I would not let them strap up their friends and let them go, my husband (Dion Briggs) and I started to teach the children in the neighbourhood.” Later, the Division of Infrastructure, Quarries and Urban Development reached out to her to assist its queen in an inter-department Carnival competition. [caption id="attachment_1140456" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Simone Scipio-Briggs was part of the Tobago contingent that travelled to the UK for the World Travel Market in 2024. -[/caption] She said, “It (tutoring) just evolved over time. But I keep telling people I don’t have a class because I don’t have time. My children have very busy schedules. However, if you are willing to learn and you can fall in when I have time, then no problem.” Scipio-Briggs’ interest in stilt-walking began when she was just 13. “I always remember I went into Scarborough for Carnival with my parents and I saw the moko jumbies walking and I looked up and I was like, ‘But I know these children. These boys from Mt Pleasant.’ I said, ‘Daddy, I want to try that.'" Her father, she recalled, did not hesitate. He took her to the Itsy Bitsy Playhouse and Folk Theatre in Mt Pleasant, founded by former independent senator and cultural activist Annette Nicholson-Alfred. At the time, a cultural group from Cocorite, Trinidad, was conducting a camp on stilt-walking and Scipio-Briggs was eager to try it. She said she scoffed at the “baby stilts” they initially gave her. “I didn’t want to go on them. I told them there were children younger than me who were high up there and they wanted to start me quite down there. “They said I had to catch my balance before I go up. But I was like ‘No, I want to start up there.' So they started me on a three-foot stilt and I took to it easily and never looked back.” Scipio-Briggs said she played the moko jumbie from age 13 until about 22 and gave it up. But she resumed portraying the character around 2018, quite by accident, when the Division of Tourism hosted a workshop on moko jumbies for children. [caption id="attachment_1140455" align="alignnone" width="768"] Simone Scipio-Briggs ready for the road. -[/caption] Scipio-Briggs said she enrolled her children in the workshop “because it is something that I did and felt they could try it. “When we got there, of course Mummy had to mount up on the stilts and show them that I could do this thing too.” She said Des Vignes, with whom she had played mas for years, asked if she would like to carry a costume on stilts. “All of a sudden I was a moko jumbie again.” Scipio-Briggs said she was excited about carrying a costume on stilts. “Prior to that, as much as I would have been a moko jumbie, costumes were basically a jersey and a pants, nothing elaborate. But with Marcus Des Vignes, it was a whole butterfly costume and knowing how to manoeuvre the wings, display the costume and still have fun, it was a different experience and I really enjoyed it. “But It has now morphed into something so different from what I expected. It was originally just to play mas but now I am doing so many other different events.” The performer regards the moko jumbie as a protective spirit which can sense danger. She said while assisting a theatre arts student with a project, she learnt that moko jumbies also have the ability to look into the past and see the future. But there is also an apparent dark side to the character. “We saw in Guyana where it is said that if you walk between its legs and they close it, that is the end of your life.” Observing that Tobago’s pool of moko jumbies has diminished over the years, Scipio-Briggs said she welcomed the Department of Culture’s workshop on stilt-walking, Out Ah We Carnival 3, on February 15. It attracted many young people. “Although they would have called for a trainer from Trinidad to do the training, I shared my number with some parents, letting them know I am willing to work with the children because four out of my five children do moko jumbies and I want to see us continue it. I want to see Tobago going back to the days when we could see a band of moko jumbies coming down the road.” Scipio-Briggs advises beginners to start off on one-foot stilts “to develop their comfort zone.” She said balance is a critical factor. “That is one of the things I try to tell my students, once you get the mechanics of it, the balance and the fact that you can’t stand still, once you get that it does not matter what height you go at, once you have that strength to lift the stilt, you good to go.” Scipio-Briggs did antics on the stilts when she was much younger but that is no longer the case. “They would show us tricks to throw up your foot and hop on the other. I have not returned to that aspect of it because I am very much still concerned for my safety. Should I fall from my stilts at this age, it probably is going to be difficult. I enjoy the culture but I don’t wish to go to the reckless end.” She said in Tobago, moko jumbies normally perform on five-foot stilts. “That is because there is usually a maximum height for costumes. When I would have carried costumes, because the costume would normally carry a height to it also, we had to reduce the height of the stilt. So what I use now for costumes is a three-foot stilt.” But Scipio-Briggs observed the island does not follow that rule anymore “because the jumbies from Trinidad seem to be higher than that. “I don’t have a problem with the higher moko jumbie. The most I would do right now is a five-foot and even that I am not really comfortable with. It is not that I can’t do it. But I view me, as a moko jumbie, interacting with the people. I am a people person.” She explained, “When you on five-foot stilts and the crowd stops you and they want to take a picture, they have to angle the picture in a way that you only get their face and you up there, you get them and your waist go down. “At a three-foot stilt, it is still comfortable enough that you can see that I am on a stilt but I can still take a picture with the person that I am interacting with, especially when you have people who like to hand you their babies to hold to take pictures.” She believes playing mas is not just about personal enjoyment. “It is also about the spectators and if I can’t interact with the spectators and they enjoy the mas, then what is the point?” Regarding private engagements, Scipio-Briggs said her fees are usually based on the length of time she is required to perform and the risk to her health. “People may have a problem with that but I know the value of my time and my health.” Even so, she said she does not look at it as a business, “as much as I have been encouraged to do so. “Because a lot of the times if a school calls me, I don’t charge. I tell them give what you can. Make the contribution in acknowledgement of my time and my talent.” But when it comes to corporate TT, Scipio-Briggs is uncompromising. “If my price does not suit you that’s ok. The moko jumbie is not my bread and butter. That might sound a little cheeky, people might say she is not humble but that is the reality of it.” The performer said she is always willing to share jobs that may come her way. “I am not the only female moko jumbie on the island and just as I make the appeal for myself, I make the appeal for the other female moko jumbies. So if it is corporate TT reaches out and say they have an event at Dwight Yorke Stadium. I have a (WhatsApp) chat with the other moko jumbies on the island and we see who is available.” Throughout her journey as a moko jumbie, Scipio-Briggs said her husband remains perhaps her biggest cheerleader. “He is normally my safety person when I go out to do shows on stilts. So if I have a booking, he is there to help me mount up because a lot of the times logistical considerations are not taken into account. So I would have to mount up in a corner, on the ground and he would assist in putting me up.” She said people often forget that a moko jumbie is not like any other Carnival character. “When we are on the road for whatever show, a moko jumbie cannot just go and get something to drink. “So you will get booked for a performance from Tambrin Square to the Esplanade and they are like, ‘Walk with your own water.’ But how do I walk with it? People do not think about how a moko jumbie stays hydrated. But when my husband is there, he spots when I need a drink and brings my water.” Despite the logistical challenges, Scipio-Briggs has vowed to keep the culture alive for as long as she can. “I will continue with it until my knees can’t manage anymore.”   The post Tobago moko jumbie vows to keep tradition alive appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.