By Tanya Batson-Savage, Freelance ReporterHERITAGEFEST 2004 spread out a generous helping of Jamaican culture on the lawns of the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre, Hope Road. The annual heritage celebration, put on by the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission was staged on Monday, Heroes Day.
It was a full day of celebrations which started out mid-morning and ran through to night. Various stalls ringed the grounds offering food from India, China and Jamaica. There were also demonstrations of dukunnu, bammy and candy making and a few craft stalls offering mainly jewellery. For entertainment the crowd was also provided with a slice of the cultural matrix through storytelling, drama and dances showing African and Indian retentions. Additionally, throughout the day screams could be heard from the kiddies-corner as delighted children yelled from the Ferris wheel. A touch of history came through with three glances at the national heroes. Effigies of the heroes, constructed by Donald Waugh and Wazan Johnson paraded the grounds. Though the immediate identities of some of the effigies were a bit hard to discern they were clearly a favourite of the children who held hands with them as they walked and even grooved to a Bob Marley tune or two.
The JCDC presented a display on the heroes with extended information on Norman Washington Manley, Sir Alexander Bustamante and Marcus Garvey. The commission's information specialist, Sandra Braimbridge, explained that the disparity was partly due to availability. She noted that the extended information was taken from previous birthday celebrations of the heroes and that more work would be done to uncover information on the others.
THIRD TRIBUTE
The third tribute to the heroes came through a series of skits performed by various groups. Excelsior Community College walked away with the top two prizes for this segment for their skits on Nanny of the Maroons and Paul Bogle. St. Catherine Preparatory earned the third place prize for their depiction of Samuel Sharpe.
As the day grew long, the audience fattened. The seats provided had long been filled, but there was grass galore. By sunset many persons gathered before the stage, sprawling out comfortably on the grass to take in the night of entertainment. By then, the evening seemed to be just revving up. The evening session of storytelling began with Barituka Vinei of Nigeria. Vinei spoke of three foolish men: one who loved to borrow and never pay back, one who would willingly lend but demanded to be repaid and a third who loved to watch. The story ended with the moral 'When you claim to be smart, something bad might happen to you'.
One of the crowd favourites for the night followed. Tamo Zakela of Antigua who uses poetry as the vehicle for his stories delighted the audience with his lyrical dexterity. "I demand your attention and if I don't get it now I know I will get it later," he told the audience upon arrival on the stage. This seemed to get their attention.
ANANSI STORY
"I didn't come all the way from Antigua to tell you Anansi story," he continued. Instead, he offered the 'gospel of truth'. Zakela continued, "I am a poet and I have the right to recite." The first recital followed in the tradition of the boast, including an affinity for marijuana, which went over well with the audience.
"You bad man! Yuh bad," one woman yelled in delight. "Yuh mek im (Vinei) look like im naa try." Zakela went on to talk about the value of poetry before moving on to an indictment of his homeland. He described the country as a place filled with "subservient fools on the neo-plantation". His grouse was the Antiguan economic policies. He decried the countries barter of "smiles" for the tourist dollar while at the same time making itself a haven for white collar crime. He ended with the hilarious bit The Search Warrant which was a case of mistaken identity.
The night snaked on with stories from Samantha Pierre of Trinidad and Tobago and Amina Blackwood-Meeks. For the occasion Blackwood-Meeks stuck with a traditional Anansi story. However her blend of folk music and popular culture made the story appear completely fresh with no sign of wear.
