Theatre promoters host workshops in Cayo, O.W.
El Carromato and NADA: they are two seldom heard of organisations, but as News Five’s Kendra Griffith found out today, both are working for the development of the arts, specifically theatre.
Tito Estrada
“To make people access and enjoy theatre, that’s the main one.”
Kendra Griffith, Reporting
El Carromato, or Crazy Car, is a Swedish sponsored project in Central America. Honduran actor, writer, and director Tito Estrada is a member of executive committee.
Tito Estrada, Member, El Carromato Executive Committee
“It’s a training programme of theatre people in Central America that has already working from Belize to Panama, integrating the whole region into three aspects of theatre work. First, training to the high professional level and to the community and popular level. Also, we have made a study of cultural politics in the region in each country; it’s being published now. And also, we are creating a network in the whole Central America. Part of that network is NADA.”
William Neal, Administrator, NADA
“The National Association for the Development of the Arts was a consortium formed really to respond to the needs of the regional project under Carromato, which really hopes to develop the theatre arts. And this year what we’re trying to do is actually see how we can strengthen those ties.”
NADA signed onto the project in 2005 and this morning the Belizean organisation held a forum to discuss the importance of the amalgamation.
William Neal
“We often talk about us straddling between Central America and the Caribbean, but we’ve not really made efforts to see where we fit in terms of art and culture in culture in Central America. So this forum was really set up to look at that in a way that would provoke discussion, but at the same time see that a lot of what we have done so far has primarily been lip service and that we really need to take it to the next level and move beyond language being a deterrent for full integration into Central America.”
In addition to the forum, this week Estrada also facilitated a workshop in script writing in Cayo. He will be in Orange Walk next week to conduct a similar activity on the Direction and Production of theatre.
Tito Estrada
“Oriented to make the theatre directors improve their work with their actors, but also to improve the capability of organising and administrating and publishing and getting the audience to see the theatre. That’s the production part.”
William Neal
“Those are the areas that we find severely lacking. And what we have done in the identification is also start identifying trainers of people. So you are training trainers. So ten people will; attend but the idea is that they will go into their communities and then train people effectively.”
According to NADA administrator, William Neal, they want to see more plays in production.
William Neal
“It’s not only to increase appreciation for theatre, but to it’s also to increase the amount of productions you have in theatre and to move away from the idea that theatre has to happen only at the Bliss Centre. The idea is to use whatever space is available to you and to create scripts that represent your culture, your community and then use the spaces that are available to you.”
Kendra Griffith reporting for News Five.
Comprised of culture and art representatives from around the country, the National Association for the Development of Arts was formed in 2005.
