Story and Photos by Sarai Andrews
Sunday 7th December saw the Department of Creative and Festival Arts, DCFA, UWI host day two of its annual “Festival of Scenes”.
Scenes from plays ranging from Tony Hall’s ‘Jean and Dinah’ to ‘The Lion and The Jewel’ written by Wole Soyinka were performed in front of an audience of family, friends and peers. The six, year two students of the Directing I class featured that day, made their directorial debut with scenes from their chosen plays as a part of their final exam for the class. Attendees observed exam protocols as they moved through the Cheesman Building classrooms and exterior, viewing scenes from plays that included heavy topics ranging from mental health and suicide to child abuse.
These scenes were accompanied by content warnings as most students felt it important to use the small platform they had been given to bring awareness to topics rarely discussed in T & T society. When asked why she chose to portray the scene chosen from “Death and The Maiden” written by Ariel Dorfman, Anastazia Andrews stated that the scene has a direct connection to the struggle women in today’s society face. In cases of sexual assault rarely if ever is there justice, the internal struggle the protagonist goes through is not distant from that of women in this country who have faced similar situations.
The actors for each of the scenes performed on a volunteer basis for the directors; Kayla Bheekoo, A.J. Cuffy, Caitlyn Lacaille, Joseph Brown, Anastazia Andrews and Clorysa Gill. These young people worked hard to bring the chosen scenes to life outside of their academic and personal commitments. The students’ passion for the art of theatre showed in their performances. Some actors who starred in scenes were either enrolled at other schools or working. In discussion with two of the directors whose scenes were featured on Sunday, they stated that despite the featured actors’ passion for theatre, the hardest part of making their debut was casting.
They went on to explain that since “Festival of Scenes” quickly follows “Festival of Plays” which features students in Directing II directing a full-length play as part of their final exam, and since both the Directing I and II students began preparation for their final exams at the same time, they competed with each other to get actors for their projects.
When asked how they chose the plays and scenes they directed, they revealed that plays were chosen based on an emotional connection they had to the piece and then wanted to share with the audience. The standalone director to choose a comedy, Kayla Bheekoo, decided on “The Actor’s Nightmare” written by Christian Durang because despite the absurdity of the play, it highlights the theme of identity. The main character is constantly asking the question “Who am I?” and has outside forces placing an identity upon him.
As for whether they are interested in directing outside of UWI, the feelings were mixed. One director stated that she doesn’t have the same passion for directing that she has for performing. While a second director agreed, she stated that the passion she has for directing is different from the one she has for performing, she is very interested in both facets of theatre. Both directors interviewed stated that they were also interested in playwriting in the future. With the level of pride and zeal both actors and directors had for their work, the future of the film and theatre industry of Trinidad and Tobago is a bright one.
