By Francis Quamina Farrier

THERE were quite a number of birthday shows staged at the National Culture Centre, for the late President Forbes Burnham; and while serving as the Director of Drama at the Ministry of Culture, I was involved in many them, either on stage or in the background with the production team.

I was at the National Cultural Centre on Friday, July 28, 2017 for the show entitled “JULIANA”, which was staged for the birthday of President David Granger. During the fast-paced production which included music, song, dance and choral speaking, my mind flashed back to those earlier presidential birthday shows which were staged for President Forbes Burnham, and which were very good.

However, I have to say that “JULIANA” was an excellent show, which I am certain Burnham would have enjoyed, and which I would have loved to be a part of but I was very late in making my desire known.

President Forbes Burnham, whose 32nd death anniversary is being observed today, was genuinely interested in the Arts; both the visual and performing Arts. It would be safe to say that Forbes Burnham was not just a lover of the Arts, but he was a patron of the Arts as well.

All those artistes soon to leave for CARIFESTA in Barbados, should be well aware that it was President Forbes Burnham whose vision it was, some 45 plus years ago, to hold a meeting of writers and artists of Caribbean background, in Georgetown, where they exchanged views and ideas. The outcome of that was CARIFESTA, the first of which was held right here in Guyana in 1972.

Now 32 years after his passing, his vision of CARIFESTA and the interacting of those in the visual and performing Arts, lives on. Although all of the CARIFESTAs have been great, those who were at the first CARIFESTA here in Guyana in 1972 still claim that it was the very best. The scope and the involvement of the widest range of artistes, was part of that achievement. There are also physical legacies such as “Carifesta Avenue” and “Festival City” in Georgetown.

Participating in CARIFESTA 1972 were those who were very young, those who were young adults, matured adults, and most certainly the elderly. Some of that no longer obtains, as the shift in more recent CARIFESTAs is for the youth.  While the youth should never be omitted, elders should also be included. Burnham’s idea was for total inclusiveness, in terms of the geography of the country, as well as the racial and age groups. In other words, somehow back then, Burnham wanted to have Social Cohesion in the Arts at all important State events.

It is known that President Forbes Burnham loved to attend various shows at the National Cultural Centre. He had a very special chair which was located at the immediate right of the center isle of the front row in the balcony. It had a little side table attached to it, on which was placed his red phone for any emergency call; that was of course, long before the invention of cell phones.

On Friday night, there was a group of students in the balcony, and I took the opportunity to tell them about that special chair which was sat in so many times by President Forbes Burnham, whenever he attended shows at the National Cultural Centre.

Seating for President David Granger for his Birthday Show, JULIANA, was different than it used to be for President Forbes Burnham; President David Granger sat in the front row in the auditorium. However, like President Burnham, at the end of the performance, President Granger went on stage and mingled with the cast members and thanked them for a job well done.