Anguilla / by Melanie Reffes* - It was nirvana for literary lovers over the US Memorial Day weekend when the Anguilla Literary Festival was the hottest ticket on the island. The four-day fête, hosted by Paradise Cove Resort, celebrated the best and the brightest wordsmiths from Anguilla, the United States of America (U.S.A), Canada and the Caribbean with readings, workshops, panel discussions, scrumptious breakfast and lunch buffets prepared by the hotel’s creative chefs and a welcome reception at the swishy Viceroy resort.

Officially dubbed the “Anguilla Lit Fest: A Literary Jollification,” the auspicious festival featured best-selling author and keynote speaker Terry McMillan of How Stella Got Her Groove Back and Waiting to Exhale fame. Although she did not read from her own work, she did offer a treasure chest of tips for aspiring writers and hardcore fans during her workshop, “So You Want to be a Bestselling Author? The Real Deal.”

“Write as if your work will not get published. This way you use your true voice when telling a story,” McMillan told the crowd of fans.

Holding court under the white tent at Paradise Cove, she was enthralled by the young writers in the crowd who came from the local high school.

“On a personal note a good story is like an itch you just have to scratch,” she added.

Other fan favorites included Tony award winning actress and author Sheryl Lee Ralph who extolled the virtues of being a diva as she read from her acclaimed book Redefining Diva: Life Lessons from the Original Dream Girl.

Prolific St. Maarten poet, author and House of Nehesi Publishers founder Lasana Sekou opened the festival with a spirited reading from his Brotherhood of the Spurs delighting the early morning crowd with an excerpt about the drama of the cockfighting tradition in French St. Martin.

“There is Caribbean life beyond the sun, sea and resorts. This Festival adds excitement to a Caribbean holiday as so many travelers these days want an experiential vacation and will time their trip with an event that appeals to them, like Anguilla’s Literary Festival,” noted Sekou.

Other five-diamond writers included American Hill Harper, author of Letters to a Young Brother: Manifest Your Destiny and the wildly popular The Wealth Cure: Putting Money in Its Place who entertained with his unique take on the upcoming USA election; Antiguan author Marie-Elena John; and beloved Anguillan storyteller David Carty who delighted festival-goers with his tales of the island’s history.

Aptly named hotel packages offered for the festival included Paradise Cove’s “Lit Talk Anguilla”; Cuisinart’s“Invitation to Exhale with Terry McMillan”; Little Butterfly’s “Lit Talk Anguilla”; and Anacaona’s “Book Binder Girls Getaway.”

“Literacy has always been of paramount importance to the people of Anguilla. We look forward to kicking off this worthwhile effort celebrating the literary arts and by so doing, motivate young writers to embark on a career in writing,” Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism Haydn Hughes said.

Organized by a committee of book-loving Anguillans, the festival was timed to increase visitor arrivals during shoulder season.

“Visiting the island in the spring can be a vacation audition by our guests who then decide to return for their winter break,” one of the members of the organizing committee Sherille Hughes said.

“We started working on the Festival in February and immediately saw a great interest from the island’s public and private sectors and from tourists.”

*Melanie Reffes is an award-winning travel journalist based in Canada

The staging of The Fashion Night Out was not only to give the audience a glimpse of clothes designed by three of St Maarten’s top designers, but to put fun back in shopping. To add the special touch to the night’s proceedings was Sylver Logan Sharp, the former lead vocalist for the group Chic.

Motiance said they wanted to move away from the conventional in terms of the show’s presentation and opted instead to use classrooms for a more personalized experience.  Attendees were asked to follow a map that was attached to their program. The map led them to one of three rooms colored red, yellow and purple.  In the purple room the musical theater adults performed a Madonna themed medley while the red room featured children performing from 70’s movie ‘The Wiz.’ In the yellow room, spectators were led on a journey through the 1980’s with several hits from ‘Footloose’, the movie.

Director of Motiance Dance School Arlene Halley said that Joost and DJ shared their knowledge and talent with St.Maarten and though the school was saddened by their departure, the musical theater program will continue. “The program does not die here, they just planted the seed but we hope to keep musical theater alive in St.Maarten.”

Halley added that on a regular basis, individuals audition to become a part of the program.

“We’re moving to Saba where we will run a hotel called El Momo. It is something completely different that we wanted to do for a long time but we will return to the island from time to time to conduct workshops,” Joost and DJ said.  They added that musical theater has enriched the culture of the island by combining three different art forms; singing, dancing and drama into a uniquely healthy and fun activity.

At Blown Away, a combined group of all classes also did scenes from movies ‘Shrek’ and ‘The Little Mermaid.’

The Philipsburg Community and Cultural Center was just about half filled for Saturday night’s performance, but the cast delivered mostly on par performances. The show was a bit marred by lengthy scene transitions and an overly loud linesman.

The play, originally written by Joseph Walker, was directed by Felix Fleming who played the lead male – Johnny Williams. His natural ability to fill a role shined in this production as he was convincingly drunk if need be, emoted perfectly in the scenes required and delivered both monologues and dialogs with ease.

Winston, who co-directed the production and played the role of Mattie Williams, was just that more riveting though, drawing the audience into the play as she connected the right facial expressions and tone of voice with the correct lines. The right emotions were present even when she wasn’t speaking. Her tears were believable and one could sense that at times she was struggling to reign in her emotions and deliver her lines in a clear voice. This struck the right notes and enhanced the level of drama being portrayed.

Rene Violenus, a seasoned acting, was also convincing as Doctor Dudley Staunton. His swaying drunkenness somehow fit and both he and Fleming really did seem to connect as friends, almost like brothers. Kenneth Serrant, the understudy in the role of Jeff Williams, turned nerves and a bit of frustration as he reached for lines into the right emotions. In summary he landed on his feet and could have done without the, at times overly loud, line’s man.

Marco Wattley seemed almost type cast as the revolutionary leader as he seamlessly connected with his role. Short he may be, but his big voice carried through the theater and he really seemed to lead the cast of characters that came with him. He and Serrant worked well together and found the right chemistry to show what happens between young men who must assert themselves as dominant on one hand, but also show they care at another.

Samantha Cate was quite convincing in the role of “Mama”. She brought a spice to the production that brought the grandmother many southern and Caribbean people remember or have – equal parts sweet and funny and strong and disciplined at the same time. One could not help but laugh at some of movements. Stacey Roberts also fit in well, but needed just that bit more volume. The emotion was right, but the sound of her voice needed to carry just a bit more.

Calla Gumbs did her best in her role, but failed to deliver a proper accent in her role, sounding neither South African nor Canadian, Violenus, whose character is originally from Caribbean, also did not quite make the mark in mixing backgrounds.

While Gumbs was also able to emote well, the chemistry between her and Serrant seemed a bit lukewarm. That could be put down to the fact that he’s the understudy and was admittedly a bit nervous. She did play her role of temptress well at a certain point though and Serrant convincingly “defended his woman” at the right moment.

Jesus Richardson and Akeem Adams were convincing in their roles. The one critique being that both seemed to be over-expressing themselves at certain moments. This critique is more about Richardson than Adams. Richardson also needs to work on being dead as one can still see him breathing as he lay face down.

Overall the cast did the work credit and delivered a show that was strong, moving and memorable.

All this came easily to mind when I read that Harry Muskee, the founder of the band, had died last Monday at the age of 70; he suffered from cancer.

Cuby and the Blizzards introduced a country of clogs and windmills to the blues of John Lee Hooker, B.B. King, Eddie Boyd and Big Joe Williams. Muskee, keyboard player Herman Brood (who committed suicide on July 11, 2001, by jumping from the roof of the Amsterdam Hilton Hotel) and the legendary guitar player Eelco Gelling formed the backbone of the band. Cuby became Muskee’s nickname, but in fact it was the name of his neighbor’s dog.

Groeten uit Grollo defines the band for posterity. Somebody will know someday, a ballad written by Muskee and Gelling, Through the Windows of my Eyes, and the Muskee/Brood production Another day Another Road stand out on the album.

The album cover depicts a dreamy landscape with heather, sheep and an old farm barn. It has a highly hippie-like aura, though Muskee himself had nothing with hippies. “I am much too much down to earth for that,” he once said.

Muskee had a farm in Grollo, a village in the province of Drenthe. That’s where the musicians worked and sometimes also lived. Simon Vinkenoog, Boudewijn de Groot and Johnny the Selfkicker were regular visitors up north. Van Morrison also once visited Muskee in Grollo.

Cuby and the Blizzards got everybody’s attention after the Christian TV-station NCRV boycotted their single LSD (Got a Million Dollar).

In the seventies the band dissolved and Muskee continued his career with the Harry Muskee Band, later renamed ad the Muskee Gang, then Muskee and finally Cuby + Blizzards. In 2009 he released his last CD, Cats Lost.

The event was originally scheduled for September 10, 2011 at the Silk Cotton Grove Gallery in Friars Bay, but had to be postponed due to the passing of Tropical Storm Maria. The new date and time is Saturday, September 17 at 7:00 p.m.

According to a statement from Imbali Founder and Director Clara Reyes Director of the Belair Community Center Lorraine Lopez offered the new venue free of charge as a way of giving back after the robbery and delay in the production.

“This is a beautiful gesture and we are deeply appreciative of this,” Reyes said.

The date and venue are the only changes related to the event. The line up will still include Lady Ruby Bute, Isidore “The Mighty Dow” York, Fred York and Alex Jack of Mosaic, Rita Bourne, Jacky Nicholson, Stacy Roberts, Stacy-Ann Taylor, Thierry Gombs, Romeric Benjamin, Brandon Davis, Tyrone Phelipa, Aparna Samaga, Lena Browne, Mansoura, Motiance Dance School, HOT Dancers, Lucinda “La Rich” Audain, Lysanne Charles, Stephan “Stretch” Rodney and many, many other singers, dancers, poets and artists. The show will also start with a fashion show by local entrepreneur Marilyna Boston.
“The support of the St. Maarten artist community has been tremendous and those attending can expect a dynamic, entertaining, jam-packed two hours of activity,” Reyes said of the lineup.

Tickets are $10 for both adults and children and are available at the venue (Belair Community Center) an hour before start time and also at Pete’s Photos, Candy Man, Van Dorp-Simpson Bay and Madame Estate, Imbali Center for Creative Movement and from cast members.
“This production is special, because it really illustrates how local artists can come together for a cause. The break in and robberies at the John Larmonie Center were really shocking to us, because we feel like our youth and our elderly were targeted and we feel like something real is being lost on our island. The arts are one way to speak to this and sort of pull everyone together in this vein. So we are encouraging everyone to come out and support this endeavour so that we can replace our materials and also send a strong message to those hell bent on destroying our sense of community,” Reyes said.

“Thank you very much my friend for that. You make me feel like an All American and I think I need some guards to keep me under control,” Richardson said when he was presented with the award.

President of the St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation Stuart Johnson said they endorsed recognizing Richardson as part of the cultural tradition of “giving our people their flowers while they are alive.

“On behalf of the SCDF we thank and we urge you to keep on striving,” Johnson said.

SCDF Treasurer Erno Labega used the occasion to announce that Tanny and Boys and others will be paid this week. He also expressed appreciation for the fact that the calypsonians had taken it upon themselves to honor one of their colleagues.