Culture Minister Dr Frank Anthony has urged more secondary schools to participate in the National Drama Festival, saying successful dramatizations of the literature being studied by students have given them a better understanding of the works.
Anthony also noted also that theatre art is now being offered at the Carib-bean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC)-level, when he spoke at the opening of the National Drama Festival at the National Cultural Centre on Monday, according to a Government Information Agency (GINA) report.
The festival, now in its third year after being re-launched by the Ministry of Culture, seeks to promote local talent and exhibit Guyana’s culture through drama. Apart from the actors, the festival also promotes playwrights whose plays mostly reflect current social issues.
GINA said Festival Director Godfrey Naughton also spoke of the value of drama as part of the secondary school curriculum, saying it is a good tool for helping students to better understand the books they are studying. Further, he called on teachers to participate in the National Drama School.
Naughton, the report noted, said that the festival seeks to reach out to the youth while simultaneously creating interest in drama. This effort, he indicated, was accelerated through the youth camps hosted by the ministry.
He was reported as saying that since the restart of the National Drama Festival, some 700 youths have been reached and many stories have emerged from the workshops and previous festivals, while new talent has also been unearthed.
Chief Education Officer (CEO) Olato Sam, also spoke at the opening, where he reiterated that the Education Ministry was pleased to partner with the Ministry of Culture in the drama festival. Sam, according to GINA, stated that participating in such extra curricula activities inculcates valuable virtues, such as confidence, and students become critical thinkers, have a better chance of success, attend school more regularly and are punctual.
He also indicated that while some students have written theatre arts at the CSEC level, there is need for more support in the arts in schools by the stalwarts in the field. Sam also expressed his hope that the mentors, trained by the Ministry of Culture, would reach out to more youths so as to assure them of the genre’s scope outside of the secondary level.
On Monday, Ascension and Bladen Hall Secondary schools presented their plays to a panel of judges. (Ascension Secondary will be representing Guyana in a Regional Drama competition in Barbados in another month.) On Tuesday, Queen’s College, Berbice High and Leonora Secon-dary School staged their plays, while on Wednes-day, West Demerara and Dora Secondary presented their plays.
The festival will continue until November 21 and the adult category is expected to showcase some of the more talented and experienced playwrights and dramatists.
