Kamau Brathwaite is a well-known and according to many, much maligned Barbadian and unjustly so… Although his 80th birthday was in May, the Queen’s Park Gallery has given more time for you to appreciate his work by extending an exhibition, where artists interpret his influence, to 3rd July and there are many works!
Leslie Taylor, Ras Akyem, Wayne Hinds, are just a few of the people who take time to give respect to the author, poet and university lecturer.
There was also a Read-In at the Gallery not so long ago where many people gave of their time and voice to lay appreciation out for the hero of Cow Pasture (Cow Pastor as it’s also known) and lecturer at New York University.
Philip Nanton delivered Calypso, while Cicely Spencer-Cross of ‘Laff It Off‘ fame took on two works from the master, one was with Annette Nias who also did a solo piece herself.
The works which many spoke of long after the event was Matthew Murrell’s interpretation of “Folkways” {PG 13, LANGUAGE: CLICK ON FOLLOWING LINK FOR AUDIO};-
The other noted delivery that night was Winston Farrell, he was the only person not to use a microphone, and his choice was about a local cricket match {CLICK ON FOLLOWING LINK FOR AUDIO};-
The only thing I did not like was when the emcee Louise Nurse – aka Lulu – kept insisting for someone to talk after all the poetry and reminiscences, then Kamau’s co-author for “The People Who Came – Book 3” got up and spoke for way too long!
I can tell you 9.7 times out of 10, having organised and hosted quite a few Town Hall sessions, better to conclude early since if you make the mistake of any final queries or comments, that is when the most long-winded participant nobody wanted to know in the first place gets up and then you can’t switch off!
The thing is the man’s recollections were hardly anything to do with Kamau, they were more on his life in England or meeting his wife before they got married, sigh! Anyhow, before Art In The Park takes over for Crop Over, you need to head to the City and fast!
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