‘I Believe in Poetry’
THE POWER of poetry was recently manifested in such a passionate manner, henceforth dismantling any reservation as to poetry’s appeal and relevance, vitality and promise, aesthetic and evocative qualities. World Poetry Day 2011 was celebrated in Guyana on Wednesday March 23. In 1999, UNESCO proclaimed March 21 as World Poetry Day.
Previously, the event was staged in October. The staging of this event by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport followed closely on the tail of World Storytelling Day, which was celebrated in Guyana on March 16.
Guyana has now made an indelible niche in the portal of UNESCO by the annual celebration of these events. (Look out for Guyana’s celebration of World Book and Copyright Day in April.)
World Poetry Day 2011 opened with the invocation of a poem written in the late 19th Century by Guyana’s first substantial poet, Egbert ‘Leo’ Martin (born 1861).
That invocation was buttressed by the reading of a message from UNESCO Director-General, Ms. Irina Bokova. There were many useful observations in that message, which was read by Ms. Inge Nathoo, Secretary-General – UNESCO Guyana Commission, but just to quote two points:
(1) “Poetry has a thousand faces and always springs from the depths of the culture of peoples. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has long supported the work of poets, publishers and teachers worldwide. This year, once again, on the occasion of World Poetry Day, UNESCO wishes to highlight the artistic importance and the power of poetry in encouraging people to read and in creating one of humanity’s most authentic and dynamic art forms,” and
(2) “It is important to understand the strong ties between poetry and all of the arts and techniques on which people draw to make sense of the world.”
I believe in poetry “on which people draw to make sense of the world.” And so it was for ninety fleeting minutes: The consummate performance of eclectic inspirational poetry from Guyana, the Caribbean and from around the world.
If the opening item was a dark piece, it was well-placed, for it formed the sober backdrop for the following performances, climaxing with the poem, ‘Free’ by Isha Shaw.
That opening item was ‘In Dark, Dark Gethsemane’ written by A. J. Seymour and performed by Margaret Lawrence, heralding Easter, proclaiming the risen Christ. Seymour penned some of the more exciting love poems and sobering religious poems in Guyanese Literature.
From the veterans of Guyanese arts to the babes, out of the mouths of babes came forth praise for country as students of Concord Academy, led by Makayah Smith, performed ‘Guyana’ in full costume. That piece won them the Mashramani Dramatic Poetry Prize and much applause on the evening of poetry.
Following appropriately on the children’s display were two poems, ‘The Sail’, by M. Lermontov, and ‘Swan, Crayfish and Pike’ by I. Krylov, both read by Sergey Tarasov (Russia).
Rochelle Christie then gave the gathering ‘Destiny’s Child’, a young woman’s battle to be heard. From China, Xiong Shuilong brought ‘Bells Ringing in the Rain’, written by Liu Yong (987 – 1053), way, way back in the Sung Dynasty. That was followed by a contemporary piece, ‘The One Minutes of Silence’, written by Benjamin Zephaniah and modified by Kojo McPherson to suit the local situation, a poignant poem masterly delivered by McPherson.
Despite the one minutes of silence in which we shared, ‘Still I Rise’, by Maya Angelou, gave us hope through the vessel, Stacey Collymore (USA). After listening to the intonations from Russian, China, and other countries, the audience was given a full dosage of creolese from Beverley Reynolds (CARICOM) as she performed ‘Love Letter’, written by Louise Bennett. Gentian Miller closed the first session with a poem, ‘Broom Beaten’, and a local folksong, ‘Marnin Train A-Pass’.
The National Dance Company, orchestrated by Vivienne Daniels, then left the audience amazed with a scintillating dance-drama display in the classical mood. This poetry-in-dance item, labelled ‘Denial’, was narrated by Laverne George.
The second part of the programme opened with Yaphet Jackman asking, ‘When Will Your Mind Go’ — keeping an open mind, always. That question was in a way answered through the poetry of Rabindranath Tagore, which was read by Evan Persaud as the world prepares to celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of the Nobel Poet Laureate. (Tagore and Egbert ‘Leo’ Martin were both on in the year 1861. It would be a good gesture to remember our own with some sort of tribute. In the 1940s, there was an attempt to name a poetry prize in his honour, an honour that materialised in the new millennium, when the custodians of The Guyana Annual magazine initiated the Egbert Martin Poetry Prize to encourage poetry writing for students under 13 years of age.)
From India and Tagore, the programme moved to Mexico, as Mexico’s Ambassador to Guyana read in Spanish, then English, ‘Aquí se habla del tiempo perdido (Here, we speak about the lost time)’ by Renato Leduc. This was followed by his compatriot, Nayeli Cecena, doing ‘La Luna (The Moon)’, written by Jaime Sabines. Here is a piece of that enchanting poem:
You can take the moon in spoonfuls
or in tablets every two hours.
It works as a hypnotic and a sedative
and it also provides relief
for those who have an overdose of philosophy…
there is no better tonic than the moon
in precise and regular doses.

That poem was a cue for Melissa King, student of North Ruimveldt Secondary School, to perform her piece, ‘Negative Vibes’ – from grownups deterring youths. It was a perfect presentation, and the audience showed her love and respect.  Her piece was a winner in the Mashramani Dramatic Poetry Competition.
Next we moved from Guyana to Venezuela, as the audience was treated to ‘El Credo (The Belief)’ in poetry and ‘I believe in love and in art as the way towards the enjoyment of life’. This poem, written by Aquiles Nazoa, was performed by Edilia Bastardo and Kawall Persaud.
Then the audience was taken cross-border to Brazil. So far, there were many types of poetry performed in various ways. At this point, Meer Khan (Brazil) treated the audience to the ‘Seven-sided Poem’, written by Carlos de Andrade.
It was an evening of vast and varied poetry. It was also an evening of new poetry, tribute in poetry. ‘Poetess’ was written for this occasion by Paloma Mohamed, in tribute to two women writers (poetesses) who departed this earth too soon. The names of those two poetesses are Laxmie Kalicharran (1948 – 2002) and Mahadai Das (1954 – 2003). The poem was an eye-opener and present reminder to show due respect to our writers, the more so while they are still alive.
So ended the evening, with the ‘yea’ going to the distaff side of the arts. Alicia Young (India) brought to the Umana Yana ‘In Bombay’, by Tara Patel and Isha Shaw set our imagination ‘Free’.
As it was in the beginning, so it was in the end: The power of poetry was recently manifested in such a passionate manner, henceforth dismantling any reservation as to poetry’s appeal and relevance, vitality and promise, aesthetic and evocative qualities.

WHAT’S HAPPENING:
•    A UNESCO-sponsored one-week creative writing workshop is set for August 2011; limited places available on a ‘first-come-first-serve’ basis. Facilitators will include local and international teachers/writers. Please contact me for more information.
•    Look out for a new addition to the Guyanese bookshelf: ‘Copying, Copyright and the Internet: The issue of internet Regulation with regard to Copying and Copyright’ by Abiola Inniss.
•    And look out for Guyana’s commemoration of World Book and Copyright Day. Please contact me for more information.
(To respond to this author, either call him on (592) 226-0065 or send him an email: oraltradition2002@yahoo.com)