On Monday, 3rd February, Ken Corsbie, one of the most talented sons of our soil passed away at the age of 94. The accolades, pouring in from all over the globe, most notably from throughout the length and breadth of the Caribbean, paint a picture of a man who was beloved by all, young and old.
Corsbie had become the quintessential Carib-bean man. A man of the theatre, a man of the Arts, a man of versatility.
Who was Ken Corsbie? This column has neither the space nor the time to explore what Corsbie accomplished in a lifetime. It was a life filled with achievement, a life fully lived, yet one would hardly ever meet a more down to earth person. Corsbie – quite often mistakenly called ‘Crosbie’ – or, simply Ken, embodied that highly sought after persona of ‘cool’. Just all- time chill. The man exemplified the essence of casualness, more often opting for a simple shirt, short pants and sandals, which was dovetailed with that mystical component of agelessness. He was a man boundless energy who could turn up anywhere in the Caribbean at any time, and in a flash would captivate the spellbound audience before leaving them in peals of laughter.
Corsbie’s origins are a reflection of the melting pot of our history. As he revealed in an interview in (the then BWIA inflight magazine) Caribbean Beat,(Issue number six, Summer 1993), ‘Mister Theatre: Ken Corsbie,’ “I am a Caribbean person. My father was Chinese, African and Welsh, and my mother was Scottish and Portuguese.” The two pivotal axes of his formative years were attending St. Stanislaus College and the famous “Taitt yard” in Murray Street (now Quamina Street) [which Ken himself documented in his tribute to his childhood friend Clairmonte Taitt, SN 2021/06/20]. At the former he rose to prominence as an athlete, excelling in the hurdles and high jump, and going on to represent British Guiana (BG) in the hurdles and sprinting. At the Taitts, there were no boundaries to the various art disciplines explored and this led to exposure in acting, the steelband, ballet, singing and symphony music. The arts were complemented with sporting activities including the first attempts at the sport of basketball in Georgetown. From the humble beginnings of a hoop nailed to a sapodilla tree, Ken and his sporting buddies would go on to play a significant role in the development of the game in the city. In addition to representing BG as a player/captain, Corsbie would later serve the game as a coach, manager and administrator.
The boundless athletic energy of a national sportsman was soon winding its way onto the stage, as Corsbie became a founder member of The Theatre Guild in 1959, where he acted in thirty plays within the first five years. A three-year theatre scholarship in England followed and upon his return to Guyana, he was employed as a producer/announcer with the Guyana Broadcast-ing Service. He would go to become the first Playhouse Director of the Guild, and then Director of Drama in the Department of Culture.
Five years after his return from drama school, Corsbie staged his first one man show, ‘He-One’, a collection of Caribbean stores and poems. The positive responses to the show marked the beginning of a new wave of drama in the Caribbean. The show would soon evolve into a collaboration with fellow actor Marc Matthews, ‘Dem-Two’, a Caribbean style cabaret show which soon blossomed into ‘All-Ah-We’, with more actors and musicians. It was performed over 200 times in eight years, as audiences throughout the region were exposed to our man of theatre.
In 1978, Corsbie moved his base to Barbados where he headed the fledgling Theatre Information Exchange, an association of Caribbean theatre activists and groups. There, Corsbie became a freelance theatre consultant and performer, travelling the Caribbean doing one-man shows, theatre workshops and radio programmes, and directing plays, including ‘Barbados, Barbados’, which ran for five years. Among his many lasting contributions to the arts in the Caribbean was a book, ‘Theatre in the Caribbean’ (1983) which was designed for schools and traced the evolution of theatre in the region. There was also a 13-part television series called Caribbean Eye, which explored cultural and social themes across the Caribbean islands. A UNESCO/ Banyan Studio (Trinidad) production, Corsbie was selected to present the series which illustrated the close linkage between the islands while celebrating their similarities and differences.
A natural storyteller and comedian, Corsbie was blessed with a superb gift of delivery and timing and the rare touch of being able to reach audiences of all ages and various backgrounds as he presented material from his extensive repertoire of Caribbean folklore . For many years, Corsbie was a fixture on the ever evolving Caribbean storytelling circuit, ranging from Gimistory in Cayman Islands to Spicemas in Grenada to Jamaica’s Ananse SoundSplash. At these festivals, he not only performed but spent invaluable time with younger artistes passing on the stage craft and the art form of being a griot. His legacy to the Arts in the Caribbean speaks for itself. We are fortunate that he has left us a unique body of work; writings, broadcasts, workshops and presentations, documentaries, interviews, CDs, and of course, priceless recordings/videos of live performances.
Corsbie was the last man standing of a unique band of Nation Builders. He was the last of the batch which bridged the span of the pre-independence decades and post-independence years when our National Identity was being forged in the harsh reality of the international arena. He was a leader, a trail blazer, a story teller, a cultural ambassador, a flag bearer, a teacher, an inspiration, a tour de force. First and foremost, Corsbie was an entertainer of the highest order. Ken Corsbie was our gift to the Caribbean. He had transcended our shores to become the quintessential Caribbean Man, a voice recognised throughout the region, a representative of the people. Corsbie’s contributions to our Nation, as a sportsman, and cultural ambassador should be recognised for posterity.
As you embark on your ‘Last Train Ride’, once again, making everybody laugh, thank you for all the sweet, sweet stories and hilarious memories Ken.
Rest in Peace. Ken Corsbie, 1931 – 2025.
