CARIFESTA 10 – Guyana – 2008
Charlestown, Nevis
September 09, 2008
Chairman of the Nevis Cultural Development Foundation (NCDF) Mr. Halsted “Sooty” Byron described Nevis’ participation in the recently concluded Caribbean Festival of Arts (Carifesta) X in Guyana, as one which benefited the island and its young performers.
Mr. Byron, who headed the delegation from St. Kitts and Nevis, made the comment when he spoke to the Department of Information on September 09, 2008, following their return to Nevis on September 02, 2008. Out of the 10 masqueraders who performed, Mr. Byron said five were below the age of 18 but the NCDF thought it was important to give them the exposure because too often the impact of the art form outside of Nevis was not realised.
“We thought it was important to give them the exposure so that they can see for themselves the kind of impact that the masquerades can have on people outside of Nevis. I don’t think our young people whether they are performers or not really appreciate the significance and the importance of the masquerades and other folklore.
“When they get a chance to go away to other places and they see how people receive the masquerades, how people react to the performances, the kind of appreciation that is shown when the dances and the music are performed, the young people get a different perspective on the art form and they begin to look at it in a different light because it is something that is distinctly Nevisian,” he said and added, “I think that is the greatest benefit that any young person can get from participating in Carifesta, from learning the significance and importance of the masquerades but generally, I thought, the young people as well as the older ones got a chance to interact with other performers.
