Presents
No Country for a
White
Hero
A play depicting the Barbados transformational politics of Athol Edwin Seymour ‘T. T.’ Lewis Written by Hilary McD. Beckles Directed by C. M. Harclyde Walcott Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination The University of the West Indies Cave Hill Campus
26, 27, 28 & 29 June 2014
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No Country for a White Hero
Writer
Hilary MCD. Beckles
H
ilary McD. Beckles likes to imagine himself to be a cricketer, a writer, a teacher, and an education administrator, in that order. Challenged by circumstances beyond his control, he has had to make a living as a Professor of Economic History and Pro-Vice Chancellor of The University of the West Indies. He has long had a passion for educational theatre and considers it a primary vehicle for the ventilation of historical concepts and ideas. As a writer of plays that seek to
historicize contemporary issues, he sees himself as an artisan rather than an artist. Despite what seems like a life of public lecturing and appearing before television cameras, he finds it impossible to imagine performing on a theatre stage. Educated at Black Bess Primary and the Coleridge and Parry Secondary School, he completed his secondary education in Birmingham, England before attending the University of Hull where he read for a BA and PhD in Economic History. In 2004, he received an Honorary DLitt from his alma mater for outstanding work as an historian. Hilary is the author of many books and articles, including: The History of Barbados: From Amerindian Settlement to Owen Arthur (Cambridge University Press), Centring Woman: Gender Discourses in Caribbean Slave Society (Ian Randle Publishers), and The Development of West Indies Cricket, 2 volumes (Pluto Press, UWI Press). He served as a member of the Cultural Committee of His Royal Highness Prince Klaus of the Netherlands, as an international editor of the Journal of American History and as a council member of the Institute of Early American History and Culture. He has been a visiting professor at the University of London and New York University. In addition, he has lectured at universities in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas. No Country for a White Hero is his eighth play.
No Country for a White Hero
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Athol Edwin Seymour (T.T.) Lewis
T
.T. Lewis, as he was popularly known, was born on 10th December, 1905, to Henry and Ethel Lewis. His father Henry worked as a bookkeeper at Drax Hall and Pool Plantations before migrating to the United States, leaving behind his wife and five children in Barbados.
Life was difficult for the Lewis family who lived on the edge of poverty. ‘T.T.’, one of a set of twins, left home at the age of ten and subsisted on odd jobs until he was hired at the age of fourteen by the Central Agency, where he worked until his abrupt dismissal after some 28 plus years of service. His loss of employment was directly related to his politics, which were interpreted as a challenge to white elite interests striving to maintain the status quo of social and economic power. ‘T.T.’ Lewis was largely self-taught and developed a social consciousness which he articulated quite openly. This in itself was unusual for a white Barbadian of the time. He was elected to the House of Assembly and, among others, he initiated policies designed to improve the lot of the black working class, in particular advocating the need for universal adult suffrage and free education. These were initiatives which he pioneered and championed, and which would later become official legislated government policy. For a decade and a half he represented the City of Bridgetown in the House of Assembly, first as an independent, then as a member of the Congress Party, next as a member of the Barbados Labour Party, and finally as a candidate for the Democratic Labour Party. He was elected to the Barbados Parliament in 1942 as an Independent, re-elected in 1944 under the banner of the Congress Party, and re-elected in 1948-55 as a member of the, Barbados Labour Party (BLP). Lewis broke with Grantley Adams in the early 1950s but remained a member of the BLP. In 1956 the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) was formed and Lewis joined. During the 1956 election, he ran as a member of the DLP, and was defeated.
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No Country for a White Hero
An incident which many think was pivotal in the life of both Lewis and the country centred on the elections of 1948. On 13th December, 1948, during the era when each constituency had two representatives, Lewis won a seat in the House of Assembly as Junior Member for the City of Bridgetown in the General Elections, as a member of the BLP. It was this election victory which is alleged to have been the trigger that caused his dismissal from the Central Agency Ltd. Early in the following year, on January 6, 1949, Grantley Adams (later Sir Grantley), President of the BLP, led a march throughout Bridgetown in a demonstration against ‘T.T.’ Lewis’ dismissal. Carrying banners bearing slogans such as “Lewis will not be butchered”, “Lewis victimised, who next?”; “Hitler is dead, kill local fascism,” the demonstrators, starting from the waterfront, marched through virtually every major street in the City. The march attracted a large number of participants and included members of the House of Assembly: Frank Walcott later Sir Frank, (National Hero), M.E. Cox, and of course ‘T.T.’ Lewis himself. The demonstrations continued in the City on the two following days. ‘T.T.’ Lewis was never reinstated in his job, but continued to serve in the House of Assembly until he lost his seat in 1956. He died while in St. Lucia for his daughter’s wedding in 1959 and was buried there. The major electoral victory of the Democratic Labour Party at the polls in 1961 saw Errol Walton Barrow become Premier of Barbados. Among the earliest policies of his new administration, was the cause that ‘T.T.’ championed all his life, the provision of free secondary education for all Barbadians. In 1962, the Government of Barbados guaranteed free education for all Barbadians.
Sources: Lewis, Gary. White Rebel: The Life and Times of T.T. Lewis, (1999)/ Watson, Karl. Barbados First: The Years of Change, (2003)/ Barbados Government Information Service. Old Barbados 1900-1970s, (2002).
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Director’s Note
C. M. Harclyde Walcott
O
ne of the initial and indeed most persistent questions that I found myself pondering when I first encountered the name ‘T.T.’ Lewis, some twenty or so years ago was, “How does a society, in this case a Barbadian society, so seemingly and completely forget and how is it able to do so in such a short span of time?” Of course, there are sound, rational, scientific ways of explaining this “erasure”, but one is, nevertheless, often quite surprised, if not shocked, by this kind of reality.
In this production we try to re-introduce this period or more correctly elements or moments of this period in our national history to the Barbadian population. We have tried to create a performance environment that suggests some clear dualities, and in some instances, a bit more. There is the imagined and the real, there is the memory and the actual, there is the fragmented and the whole, there is the real and the surreal, there is the internal and the external, there is the separated and the united, there is the connected and the disconnected. Concepts that are all central to our telling of this story. Similarly, in the telling, we have tried to invest rather heavily in the whole business of the layering, of both image and meaning. We have tried to locate the play on three principal interconnecting spheres, with the intention that they ought to allow for a logical and rather complete articulation. The first, and I must ask you to please pardon what I am certain will seem to be a bit of a redundancy, is the immediate, real, actual lived experience of the characters. The second is that of the rubric that governs the transaction of activity in the game of chess, especially in its more ancient form; and lastly, is the realm of Caribbean Belief Systems and ritual Practice. How we treat with our performativity elements is informed by all of this. We trust that our telling of this story may prove not only entertaining but equally importantly, useful in our collective remembering and in our re-imagining of a future. Enjoy! Harclyde
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No Country for a White Hero
the Play
A
thol Edwin Seymour Lewis, affectionately known as ‘TT’, was a white, lower middle class Barbadian politician. He was arguably the most radical member of the colonial parliament. During the 1940s and 1950s he was recognized as an unrelenting advocate of justice for the black working class, and a champion of the democratic, anti-colonial movement. A renaissance man, TT was well known and respected in arts circles as a stage actor in the company of Frank Collymore, the leading cultural icon on the island. He was also a reliable cricketer for both the Pickwick and the St Ann’s cricket clubs. In addition, he was a competitive swimmer and water polo player for The Aquatic Club. His friends also knew him as a keen, competitive tennis player. In his roles as radical political thinker and activist TT served, after a few years as an independent parliamentarian, in the vanguard of the island’s three major labour parties. He provided a consistent socialist vision for the Barbados Labour Party [BLP], and was a founder of both The Congress Party [CP], and the Democratic Labour Party [DLP]. Within the fledgling DLP he was the visionary who set out for adoption the policy of universal free secondary education for the masses. TT entered the House of Assembly in 1942 representing the City of Bridgetown as an Independent. He retained the seat as the candidate for the CP in the 1944 and 1946 elections [under the leadership of Wynter Crawford]. He also won the seat as candidate for the BLP in the 1948 election [under the leadership of Grantley Adams]. In 1952, TT publicly opposed Grantley Adams’ growing conservative leadership of the BLP. He was denounced by Adams in 1953, and resigned from the party in 1955. In that year he became a founding member of the DLP. He contested the City seat unsuccessfully for the DLP in 1956. Unlike party leader, Errol Barrow, who also failed to win a seat in that election, TT did not return to the House. Sickness brought his career to an untimely end. In 1959, three years after the election, at the age of 54, he died in St Lucia and was buried there.
Continued on page 6
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the Play
Continued from page 5
The surviving BLP and DLP have done nothing to promote awareness of his visionary leadership and policy contribution to nation building. His legacy remains shrouded in silence and secrecy. The record shows, however, that he was a seminal policy maker and activist achiever. His advocacy, for example, was central to winning Universal Adult Suffrage under the BLP in 1950. He also framed the DLP’s education strategy before it won the government in 1961. This play seeks to break the silence and unveil the secrecy. It captures critical elements of the political life of this effective politician whose considerable contribution to the emergence of modern Barbados identifies him as deserving formal recognition as an official national hero.
Acts & Scenes
ACT ONE
Scene one…….Hospital in St Lucia Scene two…….The Lewis Family Home [Barbados] Scene three…..TT’s Campaign HQ
ACT TWO
Scene one…….TT’s Political Meeting Scene two ……Mrs Lewis‘ Apartment Scene three…..Adams’ Office
ACT THREE
Scene one………TT’s Campaign HQ Scene two………TT’s Political Meeting Scene three……..Hospital in St Lucia
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The Cast In order of appearance Athol ‘T.T.’ Lewis White Politician - (Patrick Foster) Ma Old Black Maid - (Sonia Williams) Dr. Joseph Black St Lucian Doctor - (Benjamin Drakes/Phillip Eno) Thelma Ward Black Political Strategist/TT’s Lover - (Cathy-Ann Allman/ Carolyn Brathwaite) Marge Lewis TT’s White Wife - (Kaye Foster) Reds Black Campaign Manager/Media Specialist - (Kenneth “Jack” Lewis) Grantley Adams Black Politician - (Dy Browne) Wynter Crawford Black Politician - (Neil Waithe) Jestine Black Political Campaigner - (Dawn Grosvenor-Davis/ Collette Applewhaite) Pearlette Black Political Campaigner - (Dawn Grosvenor-Davis/ Collette Applewhaite) MC Master of Ceremonies - (Levi King) Grimes Special Constable - (Vilmore Johnson) Journalists (i) Reporter - (Nakita Holder) (ii) Photographer - (Jeremy Browne) Frank Walcott Black Politician/Trade Unionist- (Jamal Weekes) Hugh Springer Black Political Strategist - ( Angelo Lascelles)
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The Cast Athol ‘T.T.’ Lewis
pattrick Foster
Patrick Foster’s most recent stage work (2013) was in his one man show of mythical storytelling, anecdotes, characters and song, “An Evening With Patrick Foster” (accompanied on piano by Roger Gittens) at the Barbados Museum Courtyard, and as the Pinter character in Gale Theatre’s “The Lover, Pinter & The Piano.”
He has appeared in all the Hilary Beckles Hero plays, including “A Monument For Moses” (as E.K.Walcott) and “Betrayal” (as The Governor). He will be embarking soon on Gap Theatre’s second production at The Reggae Lounge, “Arte Farte – Down In De Gully” and the vital young film company Bajans In Motion’s second movie in their “Payday” Trilogy, “Next Payday.” He is an Actor/Theatre Director/Writer/Visual Artist and Acting Coach. Trained at East 15 Acting School. Still learning.
Ma
Sonia Williams Sonia Williams is a performance artist, theatre director, writer, an educator in theatre arts, an inspirational speaker and an activist. Born January 17, 1967 at Pleasant Hall, St. Peter, Sonia migrated to Brooklyn New York in 1979, where she attended Brooklyn Technical High School and Hamilton College, Clinton, New York. There she received a BA in Theatre Arts and Women Studies and a Watson Fellowship to Nigeria in 1989.
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No Country for a White Hero
Sonia returned to Barbados in 1990. Since then she has acted extensively under the direction of Earl Warner in such classics as Lights, Your Handsome Captain, Austin Tom Clarke’s Growing up Stupid Under the Union Jack, Ntozake Shange’s Crack Annie, Warner’s Fatpork and her one woman show, Pilgrimage to Freedom and Three Points Off Center. Sonia has performed as a dancer on the hotel circuit, sung backup for fusion jazz performer Blak Klay Soyl and El Vernon Del Congo and can be seen in the Canadian film The Triangle and the Barbadian feature film Sweet Bottom. Sonia has written and directed full length plays including Amandala and The Ritual, and one woman pieces, Three Points Off Center and Pilgrimage to Freedom, and the choreopoem Embodied Knowings. She is also a well-respected director whose credits include Odale’s Choice, Return to the Source, (excerpts from Mask) written by Kamau Braithwaite, Children of Negus with writings from Kamau and Bruce St. John and Shepherd by Rawle Gibbons of Trinidad and Tobago. She has directed works for national events for the Commission of Pan Africa Affairs and the Prime Minister’s office and has represented the country at CARIFESTA, as a writer, director and performer. She has dramaturged work for various groups and has facilitated youth development using theatre in communities in Trinidad and Barbados. Sonia is the recipient of many awards, including the Karen Williams Prize in Theatre 1988, The Watson Fellowship to Nigeria 1989, The Actress of the Year, Barbados 1990, The Governor General Award for Excellence in Drama, 1998 and received honourable mention for the submission of her novel “The Passing” for the prestigious Frank Collymore Award. She has performed her work extensively as a solo artist. Sonia has taught extensively in the English speaking Caribbean, including at the Edna Manley College for the Visual and Performing Arts in Jamaica, Youth Training Entrepreneurship Scheme in Trinidad, Garrison Secondary School, the Barbados Youth Service and the Barbados Community College, Popular theatre in Antigua and in the BFA in Creative Arts at The UWI Cave Hill for the last five years, where she directed productions of high quality. During this period she maintained a strong relationship with The UWI Mona Campus, taking her students there every year to compete in the Tallawah theatre festival. Sonia has completed a postgraduate degree in Higher Education Teaching and Learning and is pursuing a Masters of Philosophy in Cultural Studies. She has researched and presented papers on Caribbean conceptualization and aesthetics of performance, with a specialization in ritual theatre. Sonia has three children and one grandchild and lives on the west coast of the island, maintaining a close relationship with the sea. She is a vegetarian who practices Reiki. She has published a short story and poetry and intends to publish her first “novella” in 2014. One of her goals in life is to facilitate the development of people and the transformation of lives through artistic excellence and service.
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Dr. Joseph (Alternating)
Benjamin Drakes Though his background is seated in sociology and psychology Benjamin Drakes is anything and everything but short of diverse. He is an award winning photographer, film-maker, actor, writer and musician.
His main passion is the creation of visual narratives in film as director and cinematographer and commercial photographer. This is testimony of his talents, not to mention the gamut of expressions captured from his subjects that comprise his portrait portfolio. His portfolio does not include just people but includes shots from high end luxury cars, to baseball and American football and nature shots for British Columbia magazine (Canada) of bald headed eagles and molting seals. Some of his local work has been published in Stylewise magazine, M People magazine and Ins and Outs of Barbados. His attention to detail coupled with his fusion of sociological and psychological themes are the signature of his work. His clients range from Cave Shepherd and Digicel to Sandy Lane Resort and all in between. When the young artist is not behind the camera as a creator or in front as an actor, you are sure to find him in a recording studio as his unique vocal manipulation has allowed him to be the voice of several campaigns for companies and organizations such as LIME; Digcel; Scotiabank; Sagicor; Consolidated Finance; American Airlines, UNICEF; UNIFEM; and the HIV / AIDS Commission just to name a few. His immediate aspiration is raising the standard of visual narration in the region and international arena.
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Dr. Joseph (Alternating)
Phillip Eno
Twenty-five years later, and this actor still enjoys the experience of educating, enlightening and entertaining. Last seen on stage in Winston Farrell’s landmark production, House of Landship, he hopes that, just as Barbados Theatre found a space for him, that Barbados can find a place for TT Lewis.
Thelma Ward (Alternating)
Cathy-Ann Allman
Passionate, driven and enthusiastic about the arts, Cathy-Ann Allman has never hidden who she is. This talented young woman played piano recitals as a child, wrote poetry as a teen, sang for most of her life and generally displayed a knack for theatrics which often entertained those around her. She most recently played “Winifred” in an Indie Skylark production as a rape victim next to Alison Hinds, who played her mother. Cathy-Ann
also played a supporting role in Sweet Bottom by Gladstone Yearwood, director of the EBCCI. These were her first film projects. While attending university she trained in the Cave Hill Theatre Workshop and later, in other workshops hosted by the EBCCI, though she was a student of economics and accounting. This lover of music, culture, commerce and animals is performing in her first theatre production, a new process which she says has taught her much and which she is enjoying immensely.
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Thelma Ward (Alternating)
Carolyn Brathwaite Carolyn holds a BA in Fine Arts from The University of West Indies, with a major in dance and a minor in theatre. She has been a dancer for the past 33 years, having started at the age of seven with “The Country Theatre Workshop”. She also started modelling at fourteen and continued some freelance modelling in New York. During this time, she won the Miss Barbados/USA title in 1994. On her return to Barbados in 1997
she continued modelling and entered the “Roots Experience Show” claiming victory in 1998. She also represented Barbados in the “Miss Carnival” show in St. Vincent and the Grenadines that same year. In each show, her winning talent has been dance. Her acting career began during her studies at The University of the West Indies (UWI), EBCCI under the guidance of Ms. Sonia Williams, one of her mentors. Carolyn believes that her knowledge of stage presence has allowed her to exude confidence during performance, but that there is still much to learn in acting for stage and screen. Since she graduated with second class honours (upper division) from UWI, Carolyn has been acting in short films produced by current students as their capstone projects in film and stage, and in other productions such as The House of Landship, written and directed by Winston Farrell, Princess Magogo, written by Thobelike Mande and directed by Sonia Williams, and Allelulia Pork Chops, produced by Alison Sealy-Smith, Rosemary and David Neilands and directed by Amanda Cumberbatch.
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Marge Lewis
Kaye Foster
Kaye Foster, a natural, fell in love with acting as a very young child when she first performed at school in the Dominican Republic. She attributes much of her informal training to her work with directors Patrick Foster, Michael Gilkes, Thom Cross, and the late Earl Warner.
Kaye made her stage debut in Barbados at the age of fifteen in The Diary of Anne Frank (Margot) directed by the late Tony Rackovski. She was fortunate at that time also to work with the late Frank Collymore, a brilliant teacher. In the sixties she spent a senior year at high school in California, where drama was a major part of the curriculum. Following her instincts and sharpening her skills over the years, she has become one of Barbados’ leading actors. Some of her major acting credits are:
•
Suddenly at Home (Ruth)
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Meetings (Jean)
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Absurd Person Singular (Eva)
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•
“Colly!” (1978 Various roles)
Fallen Angel and the Devil’s Concubine (Katie)
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Charley’s Aunt (1978 Miss Kitty)
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Pizza Man (1994 Alice)
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Sweet Talk (Sandra)
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Stella and The Devil’s Kiss (1998 Auntie Melodie)
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A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Helena)•
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Alice In Wonderland and Through
The Vagina Monologues (2003, 2004, various roles)
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The Looking Glass (1979 Alice)
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“Lights 2” (1986 Various roles)
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The Black Jacobins (2004 Mme Bullet)
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Island Voices (2008 various roles)
Kaye has also played in all of the “Heroes” plays written by Sir Hilary Beckles, directed by Harclyde Walcott and performed at the Walcott Warner Theatre, UWI: •
Blessed, (2005 Mrs. Leith)
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Precious (2005 Mrs. Marshall)
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The Redemption of Sister Dinah (2006 Mrs. Harding)
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Sobie, a Musical Play (2007 Ms. Honeywell)
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A Monument For Moses (2009 Lady Grace Adams)
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The Betrayal (2011 Miss Higgins)
She can soon be seen playing the role of “Gran Gran” in Step By Step Productions’ Vigilante –The Crossing, a new film written and directed by Marcia Weekes, which is due to be released later this year.
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Reds
Kenneth “Jack” Lewis
This multi-talented performer is an actor, dancer, drummer, choreographer, teacher and poet/ writer. He has been performing for many years and has been a part of many successful productions. This can be seen in his many accomplishments which include In the Castle of My Skin (Carifesta, 1981), An Echo in the Bone (1981), African Renaissance Festival of Dance (2000/2001),Barabajan (Carifesta VI), Praise Song for Bruce (Carifesta VII), The Triangle (Warner Bros, 2001), Unter Weiben Seglen (Nova Films, Germany, 2004), Betrayal in Paradise (N. D. F Film, Munich, Germany, 2005), The Redemption of Sister Dinah (2006/2007), I.C.C cricket world cup opening ceremony (Jamaica, 2007), Panafest (Ghana, West Africa, 2007), B.B.C short film (2007), Sobie (2007), Macbeth (2008), A Monument for Moses (2009) and Sarah: Mother of the Nation (2010). ‘Jack’ has travelled the Caribbean, North America and Africa and is currently a teacher of visual and performing arts at some institutions in the island. He has an Associate Degree in the Performing Arts, with credit, from the Barbados Community College.
Grantley Adams
Dy Browne
Acting my day, Writing my night Trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and The School for Film and Television in New York, Dy Browne is an actor, writer, director, acting coach and stand-up comedian.
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Since his return to Barbados in 2005, he has appeared in Alleluia Pork Chops (2014), Bay Kix (2014), Payday The Movie (2013), Spotlight (2013), The Betrayal (2012), Secret 2 (2010), It So Happen Suite (2010),
No Country for a White Hero
Rubicon Commercial (2010), The Souse (2009 and 2010), Picture of Words (2009), Secrets (2009), The Shadow (2009), Hit For Six (2007), Redemption of Sister Dinah (2006 and 2007),and Precious (2005). He has written and performed as part of The Gathering (theatre experiment) (2009-2012), Shoestring Theatre (2009-2013) and The Lighthouse Foundation (2013). He wrote and directed I Have No Son: Rico’s Story (2011), The Shadow (2009), Picture of Words (2009) and the radio drama The Souse which aired on Voice of Barbados in 2009 and 2010. He has directed several commercials for television and was the acting coach for local films Hush 2 and Chrissy 2013. As actor/teacher he has taught Theatre Arts at Parkinson School in 2007, Creating a Radio Drama at Barbados Community College, 2013, The Meisner Technique at The Praise Academy of Dance 2010-2014 and NCFs Master Class 2005. He has been a judge at NIFCA from 2005 to 2006.
Wynter Crawford
Neil Waithe
At the 2011 Tallawah competition in Jamaica, Neil Michael Antonio Waithe represented the University of the West Indies Cave Hill Campus and won High Commendations for Best Male Monologue. Within a span of six years at the National Independence Festival for Creative Arts competition, Neil has amassed six silver and four bronze. He is best known for his role on the Barbadian television series, “Keeping Up With The Joneses”, as Jason, the quirky boyfriend of Tracy Jones. In 2013, he represented Barbados at Carifesta XI in Suriname as a cast member in the play, “The House of Landship”. He is an active member of Yardie Boy Theatre and the National Cultural Foundation’s Performance Arts Ensemble. Neil has been blessed with opportunities of being a professional film and theatre actor, stagehand, theatre tutor, writer, stand-up comedian, director and Master of Ceremonies. Accolades and experience aside, Neil finds great difficulty in defining himself within the parameters of an occupation or job title. However, this former headboy has hovered happily in his contrastingly hardworking ‘Class Clown-ery’. Neil ‘D Class Clown’ Waithe’s super objective in life is to learn, perform and grow.
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Jestine & Pearlette (Alternating)
Dawn Grosvenor-Davis
Dawn has been a teacher of theatre arts and English within secondary schools in Barbados for the past thirteen years. She completed her postgraduate studies, gaining a distinction, at Keele University, UK, having graduated with honours in her BA in History and English Literature at The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus. She received her professional training at Erdiston Teachers’ Training College and, most recently, has been awarded the Certificate in Educational Management and Administration. Apart from her academic and professional accomplishments, Dawn is a passionate and accomplished dancer. Her great beauty coupled with her expressive talents and beautiful lines have led to awards at NIFCA and KuSu in the United Kingdom. Her previous appearances on stage in the genre of dance include the hotel circuit with the Sofyah Dance Company and Ruby Dance. This is Dawn’s third dramatic appearance. Her previous plays include the celebrated Maria Holder Trust sponsored A Special Kind of Love by Paula Harper and Lighthouse Production’s Girl on Fire.
Jestine & Pearlette (Alternating)
Collette Applewhaite A Barbados National Development Scholar, Collette Applewhaite is a teacher of academic subjects and the creative arts, and the double awardee of the coveted NIFCA Literary Arts Teacher’s Award for her work with students at the All Saints’ Primary School. A proud graduate of The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus and the University of London, Collette is passionate about Caribbean linguistics and the art of communication.
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Having always had a flair for the dramatic, she facilitates drama and poetry workshops within schools and is an aspiring actress in her spare time. She has appeared in the French language dramatic presentation Trois pretendants... un mari. Her English language roles include Derek Walcott’s ‘Drums and Colours’ , Hilary Beckles’ Sarah: Mother of Nation, and more recently, The Betrayal - The Story of Clement Payne, as well as the “The Nutseller” and “Pottery Vendor” in the annual National Crop Over Festival’s Bridgetown Heritage Walk.
Master of Ceremonies
Levi “Levitance” King
Levi King is an award winning actor and director, with a series of other talents including singing and songwriting. With a view to keeping true to his national identity, Levi King aims to take his talents to the world stage while reflecting his Barbadian identity. Evidenced in the short plays he has directed such as “Pretty Daughta” and in the plays he has been featured in, the likes of his most recent production, “Alleluia Porkchops”. This is also very present in the group AzMan of which he is a founding member, a group responsible for championing a style of delivery called Fling. With the solid foundation of a sturdy Barbadian upbringing, Levi “Levitance” King, aims to take on the world.
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Special Constable Grimes
Vilmore Johnson
Vilmore’s theatrical career has a span of almost two decades with his first performance at what is formerly known as the Queen’s Park Theatre in a Talk Tent production. He has also had some experience in television commercials and a myriad of radio commercials. This is his sixth Hilary Beckles penned production with the University, having appeared in Redemption of Sista Dinah, Sobie, A Monument for Moses, Sarah: Mother of the Nation
and The Betrayal. Vilmore has also had the pleasure of working with groups such as Laff it Off; Pampalam; Bajan Bus Stop; WWB Productions; Stage One Productions; Green Room Players and Melange Productions. Some of his noted credits include, Fawlty Towers; Smile Orange; Growing up Stupid Under the Union Jack; Two and Two Make Sex; Opening Night; Animal Farm; The Stinger; Revival and Echoes in the Bone. He has performed overseas with Laff it Off and Pamapalam in Boston and New York. He loves to sing, is a well-known calypsonian going by the name of “Mr. Vilan” and has been a Party Monarch Finalist on five occasions. He was also pivotal in scripting and appearing in sketches for a television series ‘On the Town’ a DL Smith Production shown on CBC TV 8, where he brought a number of “off the wall” characters to life, as well as one of the most hilarious television series in Barbados – Keeping up with the Joneses. Vilmore’s ambition is to continue to grow in the field of theatre as his philosophy is you can only succeed in the art form if your passion and desire is there. He has had appearances in two films, ‘Blood is Thicker than Water’ and ‘Keeping Up with the Joneses - the Movie’ and hopes that this could be the beginning of a screen actor’s career to add to his work on stage. He holds a first degree in Economics and Management from Cave Hill and a master’s degree in International Marketing Management from the University of Surrey, and relishes the opportunity to work in a major film production overseas.
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Journalist - Reporter
Nakita Holder
This passionate twenty-four year old actress, writer and graduate of the Theatre Arts programme at the Barbados Community College, believes in expanding your artistry across the international arena. Nakita has acted in numerous plays including Broken Dolls, Da Kink in my Hair and Female Sexuality. Her most recent productions include Embodied Knowing, written and directed by Sonia Williams; A Special Kind of Love, as well as an original theatrical presentation Sing a Black Girl’s Song, where she was writer, artistic director and actor. She has also performed in productions such as Wind Chimes of the Labryrinth, I Have No Son: Rico’s Story, a thirty-second holiday commercial for Acute Vision Incorporated, as well as an Emancipation Day performance for the Commission for Pan-African Affairs. Nakita is an award winning playwright and actress and won the highly commended award for Best Actress for her play Empty Vessel at the Tallawah Theatre competition in Jamaica in 2011. Nakita has since completed her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Creative Arts at the Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination and has her eyes set on a career in the international film industry.
Journalist - Photographer
Jeremy Browne
Jeremy’s interest in acting was piqued as a youngster when he played roles in a few Nativity dramas at Grace Bible Church in St .Philip and in a couple plays at primary school. This interest seemed to have waned until Jeremy left secondary school, when he began to become actively involved in drama again. He attended the Abundant Life Assembly church and played major roles in the productions: Choices (2004), ALA (2005), Mary’s Choice (2006), Three Crosses (2007, 2008, 2010).
He was an active member of the Cave Hill Theatre Workshop where he was learned various theatrical skills. This concluded with a production of Cut Pumpkin Caan Keep, a piece based on Barbadian sayings and proverbs. This primary school teacher of eight years played the role of Gerry, Gary’s brother, in the musical Sobie.
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Frank Walcott
Jamal Weekes A recent graduate of the EBCCI theatre and film programme, this young actor seeks to add his voice to the Barbadian acting world. Already making strides in film with his NIFCA award winning film NeVeR, the actor seeks to grow in all areas.
Hugh Springer
Angelo Lascelles
Since March 2006, Angelo Lascelles has worked professionally in the Barbadian theatre. During his career he has had the privilege of working with directors from Barbados, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. A proud graduate of the Barbados Community College theatre arts program, his most memorable performance was his portrayal of the late Mighty Carew in the play Blue Soap (then Voices in Exile) (2007), which was published with other Caribbean plays in a book entitled ‘Emancipation Moments’. In 2013 as a member of the cast of the award winning play House of Landship (2013), he represented Barbados at the Caribbean Festival of Arts (Carifesta) in Suriname. During the same year Angelo co-starred in ‘Keeping up with the Joneses: The Movie’ which was screened in the United Kingdom in March of this year. His most recent project was in Mark Jason Welch’s Love! : Is the Province of the Brave (2014). In the future, Angelo intends to focus his attention on the area of film. His motto is “To Whom Much is Given, Much is Expected.”
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The Crew Stage Manager
Nicole Blackman
Singer, songwriter, teacher, stage manager, entrepreneur…This is Nicole Blackman. Going by the stage name “Nicovia”, she released her debut double disc album Exposure in 2013, with her long-time friend and co-singer “Larix”. She lives and breathes theatre in her everyday life as a vocal coach with East Point Productions, Voice and Speech tutor at the Barbados Community College and a Stage and Events Manager with Fieldtech Staging Solutions. She also enjoys working with the youth and is a facilitator in the A Ganar employability skills development programme. Nicole has been a part of the stage management team for five previous Heroes plays, sometime doubling as stage crew and actor. This year she holds the position of stage manager.
Production Assistant
Chantal Graham
Chantal has lived as a production assistant, production coordinator, artistic director, stage manager, stage director, co-producer, producer and performer in the creative arts. In her junior years she danced under the instruction of Mr. Reggie Cave; a discipline which prepared her for the demanding but rewarding career in theatre and film. Filled with ideas and driven by passion and ambition, Chantal pursues a Masters degree in Creative Arts- Arts Entrepreneurship at UWI, Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination, as she paves the path to a successful future in the arts. This is her fifth Heroes play.
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Costume Designer
Glenn Brathwaite
Glenn Brathwaite has a passion for Caribbean creativity. He has been influenced and mentored by the likes of Marcia Chandler , Daphne Joseph Hackett , Earle Warner, Lillian – Sten Nicholson and Peter Minshall.
Rooted in the Caribbean experience he sees himself as a heritage inspired Design Artist taking his inspiration from Culture, History, and Afro Caribbean spirituality in particularly Santeria and its other diasporaic versions of the religious beliefs and practices of the Yoruba people of West Africa. He is the creative energy of GENKI DESIGNS a specialist in exquisite Carib Island inspired surface designs since 1996, and has been consultant to Exclusive Cottons of the Caribbean, dealers in Barbados Sea Island Cotton and Lifestyle Resort Collection for Home and Apparel. Glenn has received many rewards through his design efforts and the satisfied success of his clients both in fashion and the arts. He is the first NIFCA (National Independence Festival of Creative Arts) awardee in 2004 for Costume Design winning a silver for ‘Sisteren’, a Gene Carson choreography performed by Dancing Africa. Silver in 2005 for “the Maafa” by The Israel Lovell Foundation which also won the UNESCO award for the Commemoration of the abolition of the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade, 2008 and saw the crowning achievement of a Gold award for ‘African Transcendence’ also performed by the Israel Lovell Foundation. In 2009 he received another gold for outstanding Costume Design in Music for the Rhythm Combo piece ‘Diasporaic’ performed by the Israel Lovell Foundation . He has designed two Barbados Dance Theatre Seasons of Dance under Gene Carson. His theatre experience credits him with ‘Praise song for Burgie’, CARIFESTA IX, Barbados national contribution; Austin Clarke’s ‘The Polished Hoe’, produced by Obsidian of Toronto, Timothy Callender’s ‘The It so Happened Suite’ and Derek Walcott’s ‘Drums and Colours’. Love of Caribbean culture, environment and the steady demise of Costume Mas bands in Barbados led him to found ‘De Real Mas’ and produce a Kadooment Band in 2009 entitled BEAUTY IN PERIL dedicated to the International Year of the Coral Reefs under the patronage of the Coastal Zone Management Unit and is featured in the publications, Barbados – a coral reef and Visions of Barbados. Glenn has been the Costume Designer and Wardrobe Master of the past seven National Heroes productions.
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Costume Maker
Veronica Reece
Veronica is a past student of the Barbados Community College, with an associate degree in fashion design. She has worked on many stage productions in Barbados, including all of the Heroes plays, St Winifred’s and the Convent pantomimes, Mustard Seed Kids, among others. Each year, her designs can be seen on the Crop Over stage, as she produces costumes for the island top calypsonians. Mikey, Blood, Edwin and Khiomal have all worn her costumes. When she’s not working on stage
Make-up Designer
Adzil Stuart
Adzil Stuart is renowned for his talent as a make-up artist and consultant and has judged several beauty, talent and modelling shows locally, regionally and internationally.
He is the chosen makeup artist for numerous brides in Barbados, advertising agencies and for local celebrities (he has travelled extensively with Alison Hinds as her make-up artist and image consultant) and television presenters for CBC, CBU and CMC. He has worked extensively with film companies shooting in Barbados and with the local theatre fraternity (as a member of Green Room Theatre, as both actor and make-up artist). He has also worked with modelling agencies locally, regionally and in New York. In New York, Adzil has had the pleasure of making up such international celebrities as Faye Dunaway, Howard Rollins, Wesley Snipes and Patrick Swayze. Adzil was also the make-up artist to the bridal party and bride of Tiger Woods. Continued on page 24
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Make-up Designer
Adzil Stuart
Continued from page 23
As a part-time tutor at the Barbados Community College, Adzil has shared his knowledge and experience with the students there. He has produced the BMEX fashion shows for over 8 years and also represented Barbados at World Skill Americas in Bogota, Colombia. Adzil has worked as Make-up Consultant/Artist at UWI production: The Black Jacobins; King Ja Ja; Blessed (2005); Precious (2005); The Redemption of Sister Dinah (2006/2007); Sobie (2006); A Monument for Moses (2009); Sarah: Mother of the Nation (2010) and The Betrayal (2011).
Set Designer
Leandro Soto Leandro Soto was born in Cienfuegos, Cuba, where he completed Elementary School for Gifted Children in the Visual Arts. Having graduated from High School for Visual Arts Students with a scholarship in 1972, he obtained another scholarship to study at the ENA (National School for the Arts in Havana), where in 1976 he received a BFA degree in Visual Arts, with a major in painting and a minor in graphics.
In 1982 he obtained a Master of Fine Arts in Theatre Arts (Scenography) at the Graduate Art Institute (ISA), University of Havana. He has designed numerous professional stage productions. These include: St. Exupery’s Le petit prince (Graduate Art Institute ISA, Havana, Cuba); Brecht’s Galileo Galilei with Teatro Estudio Company (Havana, Cuba); Tolstoy’s Story of a Horse ( Havana, Cuba); Moliere’s Tartuffe with the Irish Classical Theater (Buffalo, New York); Chekhov’s The Bear (Havana, Cuba); and the award winning Cuban play La Peregrina with Avante Theater Company, host of the only International Hispanic Theater Festival in the US (Miami, Florida). He also designed for Alicia Alonso’s Ballet Nacional de Cuba, Danza Nacional de Cuba, Conjunto Folklórico Nacional, and Teatro Musical de la Habana. Quite active in the field of higher education since 1979, Soto taught in the Scenic Arts Department at the University of Havana from 1982 through 1986. Later, while living in Mexico, he created and directed his
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own interdisciplinary art school for indigenous communities in Tabasco, Mexico. This particular experience allowed him to study pre-Colombian cultures. This programme was sponsored by UNESCO, the Mexico-Japan Foundation, and by the Department of Education and Culture of the State of Tabasco. He was also coordinator and artistic director for an international art exchange programme among Mexico, US, and Japan. This led him to research and experiment with non-Western theatre forms, results which he later incorporated into his classes and projects as educational tools. From 1996, he taught Visual Imagination, Visual Arts applied to stage, Scene Painting, Stage and Costume Design, and Theater Craft in the Theater Department, State University of New York at Buffalo. He coordinated an inter-disciplinary project among the Fine Arts, the Theater and Dance, Anthropology and English Departments. He also designed various theatre productions: Mozart’s opera Magic Flute, the musicals Cabaret and Chicago, the plays The Grapes of Wrath, Dummies Ball, and the Shoemaker’s Prodigious Wife, among others. Soto has received various awards and international recognitions for his work, and has served on the Advisors Committee and jury for the National Theatre Festival of Havana. He has been Artistic Advisor to the International Hispanic Theater Festival and Resident Designer for Avante Theater, Miami, Florida. He has travelled extensively and lectured about his work as a visual artist on stage and as a designer, in numerous countries: Mexico City (Carrillo Gil Museum); Prague (Cultural Center); Madrid (Centro de Cooperación Iberoamérica); Peru (Machu Pichu Archeological Site); Canada (Toronto Metro Reference Library) and in the US (Whittier College, American College, Miami Dade Community College, Hallwalls Center for the Arts, Niagara County Community College Buffalo, NY, among others),and College of Arts, New Delhi, in India. During his time in Massachusetts he taught ‘Visual Metaphors on the Stage’, ‘Scene Design’, ‘Creative Journey’, ‘Performance/Body Language’ and Design for the Theater Arts Department at Mt. Holyoke College. He has also taught Scene Design and supervises graduate theses at the Theater Department of the University of Massachusetts (UMass) in Amherst, Massachusetts. From 2000 to 2009 he was Artist-in-Residence, Senior Lecturer at Arizona State University West Campus, Interdisciplinary Arts and Performance Department. Soto continues to design for professional theatre companies in the US, as well as designing his own performances and interdisciplinary art creations internationally. In the last five years he has designed, directed and served as art consultant for theatrical productions at BBC and the EBCCI and also with independent theatre companies and producers in Barbados and the Caribbean. In 2014, the Barbados Museum & Historical Society exhibited ‘Leandro Soto: Latino Theatre Design Meets Barbadian Theatre Practice’ curated by Ayesha Gibson and sponsored by the National Cultural Foundation and FieldTech Staging Solutions. This exhibition consisted of a selection of his work produced in the last five years in Barbados, a panel discussion, a one day workshop and a master class. At present, he offers art classes in his Clouds Nest art studio at Gun Hill, Barbados.
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Stage Crew
Afi Farrell In 2003, Afi pursued an Associate Degree in Theatre Arts at the Barbados Community College, fortifying herself with the skills and techniques implemented in both the acting and technical spheres of theatre. Afi’s involvement in theatre spans roles and responsibilities from actress to stage crew, to lighting designer, stage manager and technical director. Her last production House of Landship took her to Paramaribo, Suriname for Carifesta XI (2013), where she served as technical director.
Stage Crew
Tony Cutting Tony Cutting is an actor, musician, singer and song writer, who in this production, is working as part of the technical crew. He has been performing since 2008, when he was an ambassador in the Barbados contingent to Carifesta X in Guyana. His stage appearances include performances in the National Heroes series, the National Youth Awards, the National Youth Policy, and at NIFCA, among others. He
has also had roles in three short films: ‘John & Fred’, ‘Transcend’ and ‘Unspoken Words’ and was awarded best actor at the Caribbean Tales Film Festival.
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Stage Crew
Kemar Walcott Humble, keen, talented: those are just a few words that describe this gentleman. The love for theatre was strong in him from a young age and as he got older he attended the Barbados Community College where he received his associate degree in theatre arts. Throughout the years he has done work as an actor, lighting technician and stage manager. This gentleman is known as Kemar Walcott.
Stage Crew
Franchero Ellis For the past fourteen years Franchero has been involved with performance productions at the Cave Hill Campus, with the Cave Hill Theatre Workshop’s production of ‘Closer’ being his opening “act”. Currently, he is the resident Stage Manager at the Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination.
A firm believer in the magic of theatre, he constantly encourages performance students to believe in their craft, to respect their sophisticated audience, and to adopt a professional approach to the business of theatre whether in part of an amateur or a professional production.
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Acknowledgments
The Office of the Principal, Cave Hill Campus The Director & Staff Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination The Campus Bursar & Staff of the Bursary The Campus Registrar & Staff of the Registry
The Office of Student, Corporate and Alumni Relations The Manager & Staff, UWI Bookshop The Nation Publishing Company Limited The Director & Staff of the Psychiatric Hospital Abed’s Barbados Today Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation C. S. Pharmacy Cole’s Printery Limited Greenwich House Antiques Wine World Hotel Food Supplies Willie Alleyne Associates Photography Ltd Anna Went Dr. Korah Belgrave Colville Thompson Dr. & Mrs. Jefferson Clarke Mr. & Mrs. Franchero Ellis Mrs. Carla Springer-Hunte Mrs. Carlene Blackman
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Production
Team
Executive Producer: The University of the West Indies Producer: C. M. Harclyde Walcott Director: C. M. Harclyde Walcott Technical Director/Facilitation: Fieldtech Staging Solutions Inc. Stage Manager: Nicole Blackman Assistant Stage Manager: Afi Farrell Production Assistant: Chantal Graham Stage Crew: Kemar Walcott, Franchero Ellis, Tony Cutting Costume Designer: Glen Brathwaite Costume Realization: Veronica Reece, Alexis Campbell Set Designer: Leandro Soto Set Realization: Fieldtech Staging Solutions Inc. Space Realization: Colville Thompson Lighting Designer: IGM Stage Lighting Lighting Operation: Rodney Kirton, Christopher Griffith – IGM Make-up/Hair Consultant: Adzil Stuart Make-up Realization: Adzil Stuart, Shernelle Jordan, Cedric Mayers,
Shanae Worrell & Sherryanne Moore
Sound Operation: Brian Remise Wardrobe Master: Glen Brathwaite Wardrobe Mistress: Veronica Reece Box Office Manager: Colin White Front of House: Nicole Pinder, Ryan R. Brathwaite, Cameron Sobers,
Kaye Hall
Ticket Realization: Pressprint Programme Design: Brendon Duncan Programme Realization: Cole’s Printery Ltd Public Relations/Advertising: Chelston Lovell, Janet Caroo Box Offices:
C. S. Pharmacy, Broad Street The Bookshop, U. W. I.