'A travelling city': Meet the people behind the Queen City Exhibition
'We all look after each other; there's a camaradarie,' carnival worker says
Alongside the face-painted children and excited fairgoers at the Queen City Exhibition are the inconspicuous faces of the people who travel with the carnival across North America to keep the flashing lights on.
"I started at the Calgary Stampede a long time ago and I just kind of like the atmosphere. I kind of like the vibe. I kind of like the challenge ... and I decided, well, I think I'm going to stick around," said Scooter Korek, vice-president of client services for North American Midway Entertainment and a veteran of the Queen City Exhibition. He will have been a part of 46 of them by the end of Sunday.
His company is at about 120 events each year. He said 600 to 625 people travel from place to place — alongside about 300 tractor-trailer loads of equipment — to erect what becomes a village of frenzied lights and colours.
With the shrill rings signalling the end of a carnival game and the consistent chatter from people around him, Korek spoke with CBC about his love for his job.
"I just came from the Calgary Stampede where we were entertaining 120,000 people a day. We're bigger than Taylor Swift," he said.
"What's wrong with that job?"
Cynthia Coetzee started working summers in high school, then continued as she went through university and after she graduated.
She has managed the guest services department and runs the ticket department.
Coetzee defended her line of work, despite the job's crazy hours and poor sleep routine, because of the freedom and fun of the job and her love for the people — both fairgoers and co-workers.
"It's a travelling city and it really is the same group of people and we move from town to town, but we all know each other. We all look after each other; there's a camaradarie," she said.
"Some people look down on you because you worked with the carnival and as we got older the roles have really switched."
Both Korek and Coetzee said that carnival workers get a bad name but that it's often a stereotype that's driven only by some carnivals.
In fact, Coetzee said, people need a unique and multi-faceted set of skills to fill the role. Putting together the small village is a puzzle that's among the most difficult jobs.
With files from The Afternoon Edition