By Johann Earle
The refurbished Theatre Guild Playhouse in Kingston was officially opened on Saturday night after more than a year of fund-raising, construction, several major hikes in the project’s budget and the efforts of numerous persons with the common desire to see the four decade-old institution thrive again.
Sporting a newly constructed foyer, the building is something to behold with an impressive looking interior and seating area, a new ceiling, an upgraded floor, air conditioning and new sound and lighting systems. The building now has a seating capacity of over 300.
The audience at Saturday evening’s gala – a who’s who in Guyanese arts and theatre – was treated to performances of excerpts of various notable theatrical productions of Frank Pilgrim’s Miriamy, Derek Walcott’s Pantomime and Gems Theatre Productions Youth Theatre Workshop.
The Guild had been in a rundown state for the number of years, to the point where theatrical productions were not staged. But even in its decrepit condition, the Guild served as a place of learning.
Renowned Guyanese theatre personality Ulita Anthony, who died some years ago, used to hold a workshop for anyone interested in theatre. The School of the Nations also held theatrical activities there during the Guild’s latter days.
In his speech, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Theatre Guild Major-General (Rtd) Joe Singh stated that the credibility of all involved in the project was on the line and donors identified with the project.
He expressed the hope that the newly refurbished Theatre Guild will inspire creativity and be a forum for ideas.
According to Singh, the project started out with a budget of $28M, but this was later revised to $40M. “We then considered air conditioning and this went up by $28M. “We collected in cash $66M,” Singh said, adding that Government chipped in with a total of $17M, inclusive of a $2M stop gap just one day before the opening of facility.
Singh explained that the project received contributions totalling $18M in kind. He happily declared that the project had no outstanding liabilities.
In a prepared statement read by Dr Ian McDonald, former Chairman of the Board of Trustees David de Caires said that this surely must be a day which must be celebrated by all. “This ought to give hope to a beleaguered nation that positive development [could take place] and all is not lost,” the statement read. De Caires singled out the Government for its contribution and support to the project. President Bharrat Jagdeo had visited the Guild at various stages of the progress.
He said that the challenge now is to maintain the Playhouse properly and stage productions to justify the efforts made bringing the project to fruition. “I look forward to a busy schedule of Guyanese, Caribbean and international plays,” de Caires said in the statement.
A gallery paying homage to the pioneers of theatre in Guyana is on display at the Guild and it has among the icons to be celebrated Clairmonte Taitt, Margaret Lawrence, Ron Robinson, Mark Matthews, Ken Corsbie, Henry Mootoo, Patricia Gomes, Eileen McAndrew, Carlotta Thomason, Mignon Lowe, Gloria David, Lawrence Thompson and Keith Massiah.
Dialect
During his performance at the handing over, Cultural icon Guyanese Dave Martins of Tradewinds fame said that plays over the last forty years have suffered because, “we are falling away from the language of dialect.” He challenged playwrights to employ the use of dialect in their productions and said that such use of language conveys meaning in a way that Standard English cannot, examples of which he gave, challenging the audience to convey the exact meaning of a risqué phrase into Standard English.
Martins who will be headlining a show to be held at the Theatre entitled ‘Lemme Tell You’ went on to give a stirring performance of a song which was never recorded, entitled Living in the Sun, a reminiscing ballad of his experiences going to foreign lands and then coming back home.
He said that his song is about the realisation of finding the Caribbean by going away. “I learned the value of the Caribbean by leaving it,” he said.
