Back to CARIFESTA

 
What is CARIFESTA?

CARIFESTA is a three week exposition of art in all its forms - music, dance, drama, sculpture, painting, literature, craft, photography, folk art - from 31 Caribbean and Latin American countries.

It’s varied programme will include exhibitions, displays, demonstrations, concerts, recitals, discussions, pageantry, plays, an amusement park, and a youth village.

CARIFESTA will extend from August 25 to September 15.

CARIFESTA AIMS TO:

...depict the life of the people of the region - their heroes, morale, myth, traditions, beliefs, creativeness, ways of expression.

... show the similarities and the differences of the people of the Caribbean and Latin America

... create a climate in which art can flourish so that artists would be encouraged to return to their homeland.

... awaken a regional identity in Literature.

... stimulate and unite the cultural movement throughout the Region.


HOW CARIFESTA '72 WAS BORN

The origin of CARIFESTA '72, the Caribbean Festival of Creative Arts to be held in Guyana from August 25 to September 15 lies in history. Two successive Conferences of outstanding Caribbean Writers and Artists in 1966 and 1970 recommended to the Prime Minister of Guyana that they would welcome the invitation to an annual Festival of the Arts.

The Prime Minister had related his vision of a cultural mecca for the Region's people.  It was a vision of peoples with roots deep in Asia, Europe and Africa coming together to share, to perform their art forms.  The dream embraced the literature inspired by our peculiar Caribbean temperament, paintings inspired by our tropical jungles and art visualising our forefathers in the distant past.

WHO WILL COME TO CARIFESTA '72?

More than a thousand creative artists drawn from the peoples of more than 30 Caribbean and Latin American countries will display the creative activity of music, dance, drama, folk art, painting, sculpture, photography and literature.  Thousands of visitors will be attracted by the art forms of the peoples of the wider Caribbean and will revel in the cultural cosmos of lore and legend mixed with the gay spontaneity of the Caribbean and Latin America peoples.

The programme is expected to include the folk chants and movements of the Conjunto Nacional of Cuba, the exotic Ibo dancers from Haiti and the sophisticated National Dance Company of Jamaica.

Masquerade bands and Steel bands from participating countries will lead the masses in Caribbean style through the streets of the capital of the Co-operative Republic.   Also expected are the colour of Djuka and the Javanese from Suriname, and the unique Rastafarian folk artists from Jamaica.

Guyana, the host country, is sparing no resource and energy to achieve a Festival of unprecedented standard.

The song "Welcome to CARIFESTA", composed and sung by popular Guyanese calypsonian Malcolm Corrica (Lord Canary) has been chosen as the CARIFESTA Theme Song.

WELCOME TO CARIFESTA

Welcome to CARIFESTA '72
Oh what a great cultural break-through
The whole Caribbean territory,
South and Central America will be
Getting together and taking part
In this Festival of Creative Arts
Where Drama, concerts, folk groups and dance
Art and literature will be in
exuberance.

CHORUS

CARIFESTA '72
CARIFESTA I'm inviting you
To twenty-two days of education,
frolic and un,
CARIFESTA '72
CARIFESTA it's a big to-do
We welcome you to CARIFESTA '72

The dark hand rising grasping the sun,
Depicts the skills and aspirations of
the tropical man with talent untold.
All of this CARIFESTA will unfold,
The children pageant, the children
art exhibition
Will sure please your heart.
So book your passage B.W.I.A.
For CARIFESTA '72 right away.

STAMP

The CARIFESTA '72 Stamp, designed by Guyanese artist George Bowen, will be released on the first day of CARIFESTA.

Persons interested in the collection of philatelic souvenirs will be able to buy first day covers in eight, twenty-five, forty and fifty cents denominations from August 25, CARIFESTA's opening day.

The CARIFESTA symbol, main feature of the design of the new stamp, was created by Billy Ryan Enterprises, an Antigua based advertising agency

FESTIVAL CITY

Visiting guests and artists will be accommodated at Festival City - 250 houses constructed out of Guyana's world renowned Greenheart timber - in North Ruimveldt, Georgetown.

The houses are furnished with Nibbee living room suites woven by Guyana's Amerindians.   The entire decor is local, making use of Guyana's woods, her flowers, etc.

Festival City will have its own Bank and Post Office, Resident Doctor and nurses on duty, Police Station, Fire Service, Laundry, restaurants, shops and a transportation pool.

COUNTRIES INVITED

Antigua, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, St.Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Trinidad & Tobago, Surinam, U.S. Virgin Islands, Venezuela

EVENTS

DRAMA:  This varies from elaborate musical productions like Antigua's Ballade Antigua to the realism of Trinidad's Tragi-comedy Rose Slip.  Comedy, fantasy, ritual, history, folk plays and legend are all on stage during the three weeks of CARIFESTA.

MUSIC : Concerts, recitals and musical shows provide tantalising folk rhythms, soul searching jazz, as well as pop, classics and ballet.  There will be Indian tablas, African drums, Caribbean steel pans, piano, violin, flute and guitar - in other words, music for every taste, including the Madrigalistas de Aragua of Venezuela.

ART: Exhibitions of sculpture, graphics, paintings, drawings, and photographs are a visual testimony of each country's art forms.  Guyanese artists will mount several one-man exhibitions - among them Philip Moor, who is at present Artist-in-Residence at Princeton University, U.S.A.

LITERATURE: An Anthology of New Writing in the Caribbean area is being prepared for CARIFESTA. There will also be poetry recitals and lecture discussions at the University of Guyana and at the Carnegie Free Library.

FOLKLORE: Groups from over a dozen countries reveal the colour and the mystery of Caribbean and Latin American folklore and legend, among them the Conjuncto Folklorico Nacionale of Cuba, Shango Dancers from Trinidad, Shac Shac musicians from Dominica.

CRAFTS: Among the unusual events at CARIFESTA will be live domonstrations on ceramics, wood carving, painting and drawing.

DANCE: This part of the programme is all embracing - it covers courtly Javanese dancing, intricate ballet steps, earthy folk plays, dramatic modern choreography, classical Indian movements, spontaneous improvisations and pop. The Viva Bahia Dancers of Brazil will give several performances

A three day Youth Festival is also planned. This includes a Pageant of the People, mass singing of Guyanese songs, CARIFESTA pop, march past of school children, and art in action.

Most of the shows will have a second run at Guyana's National Park to facilitate those missed the first performances.

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