Dear Editor,
I had vowed that never again would I take part in a cultural presentation at the National Stadium, after losing my singing voice from expending too much energy performing in the open air on the (middle of the) tarmac for the last Carifesta held in Guyana (2011?) and memories of the daily trips with liquid refreshment for thirsty schoolchildren, delivered from my old van, as there was none officially delivered.
Yet here again I was taking part at the same location as part of the Mass Choirs cultural presentation on Tuesday May 26. It must be the Granger magic that caused this excitement that made me forget my initial experience and get on with the rehearsals, donating the necessary time and energy for a good show.
This time the rain poured as it did at Carifesta opening day, but rehearsals and performance took place on stage under a roof.
What is worthy to comment on was the fact that although the choir was transported up to the stadium in a bus, courtesy of the Ministry of Culture, the bus could not get access to the interior of the stadium, as the gates were locked. The choir had to leave the vehicle and join other waiting artists which included dozens of schoolchildren and dancers in costume, all of us to being thoroughly soaked in the pouring rain because the gates were locked.
The gates were locked because the stadium was already filled to capacity, and no one else could be let in, and the guards/police manning the gates had no keys to make an on-the-spot decision, as a senior police officer had the keys and had given the order to lock the gates.
Phone calls to personnel directing the cultural part of the show said that people were coming down to open the gates, but we finally gained entry at about 3pm having been there 2 hours before in the pouring rain, and having to witness a number of old and young members of the choir leave in frustration after being thoroughly soaked, thus missing their performance, which took place after 5 pm.
To gain entry (after 3 pm), I and others who persevered had to leave the stadium and go back out to the Public Road to walk around to the southernmost entrance of the stadium (in the rain), where we finally gained entry to the inner compound. Of course by this time the gates that we were trying to gain entry through on the western side were finally opened, and a number of people were coming in.
One cannot help observing that the stadium has no effective cover to keep rain off of the crowds attending these mega events, in any of the stands except where the VIPs inhabit. The sporting public seems to accept this, but this is foolishness in a country where there is more than 100 inches of rain a year, and this venue is certainly useless for cultural events, as the place was not designed for this; there are no dressing rooms and other facilities for the artistes.
On leaving the stage in the rain after performing our bit, there were youngsters waiting for the next performance all decked out in beautiful costumes with paint on their faces (make-up) sheltering under the floor boards of the stage from the rain.
The choirs, both adults and school children ended up in an area marked ‘Press’ with not much ventilation or sound, and the little ones had to be dressed, fed, and attended to by their teachers in the passageways outside; the whole affair being an endurance exercise for all the performers, adults and children alike.
Need I add that when a meal for the choir finally arrived we were on the bus home, having had to catch it down the road at the exit south of the Princess Hotel. The afternoon snack and a meal were received together; the snack could be eaten, but in the case of the meal, quite a number of them could not be eaten, as they were spoilt.
Yours faithfully,
David H J Dewar
