[dropcap]W[/dropcap]e all relish a feel-good moment, like watching someone live out his or her dreams; or seeing gratitude registered on the faces of appreciative recipients of good deeds! This was evident on Thursday evening when the theatre group Dramacan held its first annual Intensive Acting Easter Workshop at the Golden Palm Conference Room in Rodney Bay. Dramacan founder and St Joseph Convent arts teacher Danielle Du bois is no fresh face to Saint Lucia’s art scene. As a young girl, Danielle frequented the stage in drama productions and via musical performances which fixed her in the minds of all who knew her as someone who would go on to do great things. Years later, Danielle has now institutioned Dramacan which she initially conceived as a small school-based group but has since flourished beyond her expectations.
“Dramacan is a youth performance company and we want to be able to promote theatre on all levels,” she said during a recent sit-down with the STAR, “but our focus is drama and performance art.” The group’s motto is “Discover, Evoke, Inspire” which, for the theatre enthusiast, speaks to the invaluable impact of drama. As Danielle explained it:“The mandate is to help you discover yourself and give you the confidence you need to be able to embody someone else. When you understand who you are as an individual you are now able to evoke that sense of pride and encourage others to be that way as well. The process will help inspire others, to discover themselves, and create new things.”
Instructed by Errol Fabien, the widely admired Trinidadian artist and presenter, the intensive workshop which ran from April 3 to April 6, drew a modest crowd of over 50 participants, ranging in age between 13 and 32. Participants received training in the three domains of acting: voice, body and the imagination—with a thoroughness that is often impossible in schools where drama is viewed as an extracurricular activity, or awarded only one hour or so of class time at form one level and two hours at CXC.
The group received assistance from a number of supporters. Said Danielle: “I cannot talk about this without also mentioning the support we received from Become and Synergy . . . this would not have been possible without their intervention. I also got support from LUCELEC and Windward & Leeward Brewery Limited. So we’ve actually been very blessed. Become and Synergy are two programs developed by the Castries Central MP, Sarah Flood Beaubrun, which support and empower co-ordinators who have undertaken community building projects.
Outside of the workshop, Dramacan also has what Danielle referred to as “chapters” at the SJC, where an afterschool program is operated, as well as at the Boys Training Center where the group volunteers on Sundays, training the interns in drama, with a focus on its use as therapy and an alternative approach to rehabilition. Dramacan hopes to stage a production later this year, titled “Shorts, Skits and Sketches”which will feature short, social, comedy drama in a very edgy way,”according to Danielle. Also in the pipeline are experimental theatrical projects aimed at bringing drama—with a message—to communities island-wide. Can adult programs be in the immediate future.
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