TREVOR RHONETanya Batson-Savage, Staff Reporter
ONCE UPON a time, on a tiny island in a sleepy little village by the sea in a place called Treasure Beach, St. Elizabeth there was a tiny little festival. This festival was called Calabash.
In this festival people came from far and wide to read and be read to, though many people believed that people on that tiny island did not like to read. They also came to play and listen to music too. Although it started out very small, in the blink of an eye, Calabash quickly began to grow, and grow and grow.
Although not quite a fairytale, this is the story of the Calabash International Literary Festival, told with a sprinkle of fairy dust or, maybe, St. Elizabeth 'red dut'. In its three years of existence the festival has grown quite some way towards its aims of being the biggest little festival in the biggest little town in the biggest little country in the world. By its second year, 2002, it had outstripped its humble beginnings in the 'backyard' of Jake's Village and all signs from the 2003 renewal indicate further growth.
The festival continues to be held on the Jakes Village property, though it has moved to a more spacious section. The sounds of crashing waves therefore provide background music to many of the performances.
So is the thud of rain on the tent as well, because for two years in a row the festival was able to withstand the greatest test anything in Jamaica has to face - rain. With the Jamaican tradition of considering rain to be the greatest deterrent to most things, it was interesting to watch the Calabash audience slosh through the muck produced after consistent showers, part of an islandwide bad weather system.
Last year, Calabash continued despite the torrential rain which lashed the island, making impromptu lakes of many low-lying areas and changing the shape of mountainous ones. Despite this, much of the audience stuck it out, with some ending stranded until Monday because they were unable to make it back to their homes due to flooding. By Sunday, the organisers had to change the venue to the nearby Treasure Beach Hotel, but it was on with the show.
RAINED OUT
This year, the festival remained at the waterlogged Jake's Village compound, with nary a complaint - well, aloud - from the audience. Thus, though Calabash has been rained on two years in a row, as production director Justine Henzell smilingly pointed out, they are yet to be 'rained out'.
Festival founder and artistic director, Colin Channer, in an interview with The Sunday Gleaner, stated that what the festival is aiming to do is 'create an atmosphere where people value art.' The festival offers a chance for readers to interact with their listeners and audiences to have an up-close reading from authors.
Many of these authors are from the United States, or at least currently live there, though there has been more than sufficient Caribbean flavour to spice up the offerings. Among the Caribbean greats who have lent their talent to the festival are Olive Senior, Edward Baugh, Trevor Rhone, Earl Lovelace, Mutabaruka, Oku Onura and Velma Pollard.
In doing so, Calabash not only gives the Caribbean a chance to witness authors they have loved since childhood, but it can provide the writers a chance to reconnect with the people about whom they write. Due to the economic reality of the Caribbean, many of writers often find themselves in self-imposed exile. This year, Everton Sylvester exclaimed his joy of reading to a mainly Jamaican audience for the first time.
In 2003, under the title 'Love You', Calabash paid homage to the lyrics of Bob Marley through the talent of Ibo Cooper, Mikey Bennett, Wayne Armond and Ernie Smith. Although Ibo Cooper was unable to make the originally scheduled performance on Saturday night and thus had to perform on Sunday, the result was a wonderful addition to the festival.
Through this segment, the festival celebrated the literature possible through music and the result was a wonderful jam session which had the audience screaming louder than the
howling winds. Sans winds,
Ibo Cooper's session was no different.
Oral works were also celebrated through the works of the Honourable Louise Bennett, Coverley. Although two of the persons, Easton Lee and Lady Saw, originally scheduled to perform were not present, it was a wonderful trip through the magic of Miss Lou with Carolyn Cooper and Charles Hyatt acting as the eloquent tour guides.
One of the questions often asked about how Calabash is how it is funded. The entire festival is free and though 'freeness' can be a good thing, it must be costing someone. Collin Channer points out that the festival attempts to manage by being rather frugal and depending upon donations of time, talent and energy.
As such, none of the performers are paid and, where possible, hotels are avoided. The festival also persists with the goodwill of the corporate world and attempting to properly manage any money received, Channer said. The Calabash organisers also create T-Shirts and CDs as memorabilia and it has been suggested that with the tradition of rain, they could probably add umbrellas and hats to the list.
Calabash presents more than story time by the beach, however. By celebrating literature, it is possible that the festival can help to promote literacy, as well as the writing tradition. This year the festival extended well beyond the three days in Treasure Beach, which make up its core.
Included in the Calabash series of events was a trio of publishing seminars and workshops on writing poetry and prose fiction. Organisers of the festival point out that sessions such as the three-day workshop would normally cost approximately $15,000, though it was offered free to the 40 students selected from the 500 hopefuls who submitted entries.
Calabash 2003 also included a six-week screening of films from Palm Pictures. The screenings took place at The Bob Marley Theatre, Hope Road, St. Andrew and featured Sex and Lucia, One Giant Leap, Dark Days, Blood: The Last Vampire and Scratch.
Participants and members of the audience seem to agree that Calabash is having positive repercussions, beyond hearing literature. Dingo, who performed in the segment 'Tongues of Fire' last year, was on the 'Calabashment' stage show the previous year and took the tent down in a Blouse and Skirt Vibe as he anchored the final open microphone segment last weekend, is more than willing to give the festival his vote. "I think Jamaica need it so till it don't funny," said the popular poet.
LINE-UP
Although he believes that last year offered a more interesting line-up than this year, a sentiment shared by many, he has no arguments with the concept. "The concept is wicked," he said, "even the getaway, in terms of going into the bush." By taking place in Treasure Beach, Calabash does involve a step into the 'bush', though the participants do not seem to mind. Although not treacherous, the road to Treasure Beach is a winding one which sometimes seems to be leading to somewhere 'behind God back'.
Persons sleeping over for the festival often try to stay within the environs of Treasure Beach, though some may stretch to as far as Black River and then engage in the half hour to 45- minute commute. Although Treasure Beach boasts St. Elizabeth's highest concentration of hotels and guesthouses, the Treasure Beach Hotel and Golden Sands among them, for those who left their booking until the couple weeks leading up to last weekend there was no inn to be in. In fact, one person booked in at the Treasure Beach Hotel from early February. By going to this segment of the bush, Calabash is helping to draw some attention to the often-ignored shores of the South Coast. Possibly this may result in the further, much needed, development of the area, though hopefully not to the detriment of its quaint appeal.
The festival also gives younger artistes to develop and/or test their work. Dingo pointed out that his Calabash experience helped him develop his craft. "When I entered the first Calabash (2001) I felt like I'd never written anything before when I heard the people read," he said. "I grew from that. I will always love Calabash for that." The tumultuous applause which he received during a brief reading and encore in the open microphone segment showed that the audience certainly believes he is writing well.
Tommy Ricketts, the president of the Poetry Society of Jamaica, is also glad to point to the positives of Calabash. Pointing out that he spent more time attempting to merchandise and organise than listening to the readings, Ricketts noted that the bookshop segment of Calabash is very important. In a section of the Jack Sprat restaurant, books of current Calabash readers, past readers and other books are for sale. Often spurred on by readings of the authors, members of the audience make their way to the bookshop. As a result, Ricketts believes that the
festival is effectively promoting literature and that is all that
matters.
