If you remove the d – from drum, what would you have…

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he first inaugural Antigua and Barbuda International Folk Dance and Music Festival was held in Antigua & Barbuda last week June 25th to July 2nd 2018. It is not the first time Antigua & Barbuda takes the lead in the arts, or even in celebrating folk dance. Although with the looming threat of civil unrest in Barbuda, this festival saw many victories as challenges did not thwart the plans of the department of culture…

The Senator within the Ministry of Sports, Culture and National Festivals in Antigua and Barbuda honourable Daryll Mathew, an avid sportsman keeping up to date with the world cup and clearly expressing his favour for an underdog (it will keep them interested in the world cup for another 50 years), explains the chess match that is international relations, sports enterprise and which lends itself to an understanding of culture. “I appreciate the arts… I am not artistic…” he confesses. The minister lent a diligent ear to the proposal of a regional dance theatre company, arising from this first inaugural rencontre, clarifying and fortifying the need for a higher quality product for the tourism sector as well.

The candour and vision of the ministry was further emphasized by the permanent secretary within the Antigua, Barbuda Ministry of Sports, Culture and Festival events Mrs. Sarah Stuart-Joseph and Ms Sandra Joseph. The PS made it her duty to attend every single event relating to the festival, remarking on the areas for improvement, but lauding the excellence, artistry and professionalism of the technical and artistic displays. Richard Ambrose of St. Lucia, came up for high note in his use of projected video and his dramaturgy in dance at that meeting.

The direction of culture is a serious affair in Antigua & Barbuda. The director of culture Mr. Vaughn Walter M.B.E himself—an avid theatre enthusiast—not only staged a play, but orchestrated that the coordination of the festival and amenities met with unparalleled support for the dance festival. His unexpected appearance at the opening ceremony (having moments before arrived from a Carifesta 2021 planning meeting) lent words of strength, support and an almost battle cry signaling the glory and urgency of arts development within the region. He reassured his subordinates of his commitment to serve the arts.. “I have a heart for culture…”

But it is essentially Mr. Roy Gilbert Laudat, director of events within the cultural division, who convinced the overseas tutors to drop everything and come to Antigua & Barbuda for this inaugural festival. Mr. Laudat’s years of experience, knowledge and work in the arts has taken him all over the world; and though it is a daunting task he has not waivered in motivating his staff, countrymen, young artistes and others in the region helping them realize that there is much to gain in ‘perfecting one’s craft’. His invitations extended to as far south as Trinidad and Tobago, to as far north as Toronto, Canada.

The international tutors present at this festival included Miss Allyson Trunzer from Toronto, with roots in Barbuda, Mr. Richard Ambrose, of St. Lucia, still fresh from his solo at Carifesta 13 in Barbados, and the reverred Ian Douglas international director, dancer,choreographer, agriculturist, researcher from Barbados.

The intoxication of the dance, the music, the drum whet the entire festival. But one lasting impression will be that of the choreography earthed by Dr. Douglas and the band of dancers. Local dancers of Antigua, Barbuda and tutors including Karen Brookes of Passion de danse and Tavia Hunte of Shiva dance academy, along with Thyanna Sebastien of Elite dancers and some young dancers who participated in the workshop, presented a life like story.

The setting, a clothes line, familiar images of a woman and her children, a love triangle à la Caribbean, an early morning meditation and ‘everybody peeping’ made this choreographic work accessible and enjoyable to the audience who did not fail to express their appreciation in raucous laughter and applause.

“Imagination motifs” was spectacular as a closing to the traditional dance and music festival. The work being so celebrated has begun to crystalize into a regional dance theatre ensemble. The booking agent Ms Rene Robinson has expressed the commitment to refining the work, taking it across the Atlantic to audiences in Europe eager to have a taste and experience of the Caribbean aesthetic.

Look out Caribbean because the ‘Ethnic Folk Arts ensemble’ strips bare, removing the ‘d’, extracting the rum, the essence of Caribbean aesthetics, laying it bare, challenging the audience through sophisticated tableau and contemporary vocabulary set in traditional musings.

Their next stop is St. Lucia. Contact our offices for details.