After the death of his father, JEROME ADAMS flies back to his hometown Cape Town from Johannesburg, after a 10 year absence. Uninterested in being around his father’s club and minstrels, Jerome hopes to return to Johannesburg soon after the funeral. Given their toxic relationship, Jerome is surprised to discover that his father has left him THE GOEMA CLUB and The Umbrella Men minstrel troupe.
TARIEK CUPIDO, a long-time rival of Jerome’s father and his troupe, offers to take the troublesome nightclub off Jerome’s grateful hands. However, while the deal is happening Khaled sees through Tariek’s dodgy plan and decides to stay to help his AUNT VALERIE
(matriarch) take rightful ownership and not sell out to Tariek, who wants to nullify the competition by getting rid of the lifeblood of the Minstrels which is the club.
As Tariek reconnects with friends, family and an unexpected love, he learns about himself and why his father so loved the club and troupe. His best friend MORTIMER is released from prison, he’s a charismatic, hot-headed – and a small time crook.
Jerome discovers that his father whom he thought was doing all the wrong things, dealing with dodgy cops and gangsters to keep the club open, was in fact doing all this to leave his son this great and iconic legacy of the Cape Minstrel community. He wanted his son to inherit the club and one day lead the Umbrella Men in the minstrel carnival.
As Jerome reconnects with his destiny and comes to terms with trying to save the club, he receives a letter from the bank foreclosing on the property where the club is situated. When he visits the bank, he meets the unexpected KEISHA who works as a junior manager at the bank.
The loan account manager gives Jerome two weeks (ending on the day after the carnival) to come up with half a million rand to stop the foreclosure. Jerome, now truly with his back against the wall, decides to rob the bank in a Robin Hoodesque like caper to pay the loan off and keep the club.
Growing up Jerome and Mortimer would always take advantage of the chaos of the Cape Minstrel carnival. Police and carnival organizers would have their hands full making sure the carnival ran smoothly and were focused on the safety of the thousands of tourists flocking to get a look at the carnival. Khaled’s plan is to use the carnival as an alibi.
The Umbrella Men will take part in the carnival and while most of the troupe are on the street with their faces painted and wearing minstrel outfits – the rest of the gang will be digging a tunnel under the very same street and into the bank. Who could say they were ‘not in the parade’?
The key to the success or failure is his new love interest, Keisha. His initial plan to take advantage of this fact backfires as he falls in love with her. Tell her and risk losing her forever, don’t tell her and risk going to jail!
While this is all happening, his father’s nemesis Tariek is throwing every possible obstacle at Jerome in an attempt to grab the night club and forever end this rivalry with the talented Umbrella Men and be crowned ‘King of the Carnival.’
Will this ragtag bunch of musicians and small-time crooks be able to rob a ‘state of the art’ bank – and get out alive?
