Rainbow Coalition ‘More Caribbean Verzuz on the way’
representing playwrights of African,
Caribbean, Native American,
Latin American, Central American
Asian, European, Indian,
Middle Eastern and Polynesian
descent.
“In unity there is strength,”
Magaly Colimon-Christopher,
founder and artistic director of
Conch Shell Productions said.
“As I watched the video of
George Floyd slowly painfully
murdered in broad daylight by
a white officer, and witnessed
how the other officers ignored
both his pleas and those of witnesses,
I knew I needed to bring
a community of POC (people of
color) theaters together to uplift
the oppressed and make sure the
silenced and ignored would be
heard. My hope is that by bringing
our audiences together to attend
our productions and participate in
post-performance discussions we
will encourage dialogue and unification
of diverse communities
that will lead to social and political
reform.”
To execute their goal each of
the three coalesced to showcase
five unique new works utilizing
short scenes and monologues
written and performed to represent
voices of diversity.
In early June, the rainbow coalition
tasked writers with a 48-hour
challenge to compose five-minute
monologues and /or 10-minute
scenes using specific themes.
They included — Eye of the
storm; Breath / Breathing, Being
human when enduring inhumane
circumstances, Micro-aggression,
Disruption of norms and Privileges
Caribbean L 24 ife, July 10-16, 2020
of the past becoming pain of
the present.
Each company solicited, collected,
cast and rehearsed script
entries from their local community
artists.
Throughout the month, each
night’s performance will deliver
live world premieres streamed
via the Coalition’s YouTube channel
and each theater’s Facebook
pages.
The 30-40 minute showcases
will be followed by a moderated
Q&A session with thespians.
The series started last Friday
with:
“Blindfolded,” by Jason Ellis,
directed by Sophiyaa Nayar
“Six by Jeannie Barroga,”
directed by Wil Kahele
“Hae Upside Down” by Eric
Stack, directed by Wil Kahele
“The Dark-Skinned Kid Who
Hopped the Turnstile” by Tylie R.
Shider, directed by Magaly Colimon
Christopher.
This Friday at 8 pm — “What
If…?” by Cynthia Grace Robinson,
directed by Elizabeth Van Dyke.
than a pretty face.”
“It’s just lazy prejudice,”
Kentish-Rogers said. “It was
definitely there during the campaign.
There was a feeling that
I’m not prepared, that because
of my past in Miss Universe,
I couldn’t qualify as an opponent.
“But it was actually becoming
Miss Universe GB (Great
Britain), rather than a barrister
(lawyer), that stirred me to
take a more active interest in
social development,” she added.
“Many people see beauty pageants
as the antithesis of feminism,
but I used my role to
highlight female genital mutilation
and acid attacks.”
As a teenager, Kentish-Rogers
ran the 400m at the 2010
Commonwealth Games in
Delhi, India for Anguilla, then
followed her father and aunts
into law, travelling to England
to study at Birmingham University,
according to the Mail.
While still a student, Kentish
Rogers competed at the
2014 Games in Glasgow, finishing
11th in the heptathlon, the
Mail said.
Earlier, she was a pentathlon
bronze medalist at the 2012
CARIFTA Games in Hamilton,
Bermuda.
After completing her law
degree, Kentish-Rogers returned
to Anguilla, whose population is
about 17,400 (July 2018 estimates),
becoming Miss Anguilla
in 2017 before a second spell in
Birmingham to complete her
legal qualifications. She was
called to the Bar a year later.
By that time, the Mail said
she had set her sights on the
Miss Universe GB competition
and won the title that same
summer, going on to compete
at the global final in Thailand.
The significance of becoming
the first Black woman to win
the British crown passed her by
initially, she said, but now she
feels “privileged” to be a role
model, according to the Mail.
“When people tell me that
I’ve been an example to their
daughters, those messages floor
Miss Universe Great Britain Dee-Ann Kentish-Rogers.
Dee-Ann Kentish-Rogers/FB
me and make me understand
what an honor it is to inspire
others by becoming the first
Black winner,” Kentish-Rogers
told the Mail.
After gaining an insight
into British politics while in
Birmingham, Kentish-Rogers
said she and the APM want
to address corruption on the
island.
But, in the short term, her
job, as the new minister for
social development and education,
is to help Anguilla grapple
with a financial crisis caused
by coronavirus (COVID-19),
according to the Mail.
It said that although the
island is now free of COVID-19,
it is still closed to tourists.
In a Facebook post on July
3, Kentish-Rogers thanked
Anguillans “for the confidence
you have placed in this team.
“As we said on the campaign,
we knew that change would
come but that it would not
be easy,” she said. “For those
who continue to be divisive, my
hope is that time will bring you
to the table to work with us; for,
if we fail, we all fail.
“I would also like to thank
all those who I knew from the
inception had different views
about Anguilla’s political direction
but have exhibited great
maturity, and have extended
olive branches and expressed
their interests to work together
in Anguilla’s interest first,”
Kentish-Rogers continued.
“We are different; we always
have been and always will be,”
she said. “However, ‘different’
shouldn’t divide us but unify us,
because ‘different’ is an asset.”
Continued from Page 23
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Bounty Killer who lit up the
Caribbean that night… PS.
More Caribbean Verzuz on the
way!!” wrote Verzuz in a tweet,
which featured a clip of the
clash between the two Jamaican
dancehall icons.
Beenie and Bounty, who
have been the only two Caribbean
nationals to be featured,
provided a thrilling showcase
that reached more than 3.7 million
people globally, according
to Verzuz.
A Billboard poll and a recent
Verzuz survey both ranked their
clash as the clear favorite among
all the clashes so far, Dancehall
Mag said.
It said that the clashes, which
were started in March by producers
Swizz Beatz and Timbaland,
“provide a platform for
musical icons from various genres
who have a catalog that consists
of at least 20 hit songs, to
square off musically, hit for hit
live online.”
Dancehall Mag said that
Beatz, during an Instagram
Live on May 26, suggested
that Jamaican artistes Ding
Dong and Elephant Man could
be next up for the Verzuz stage
“in what would probably be a
high energy Dancehall dance
battle.”
“We ready for you and ele.
That’s the energy package,”
Beatz told Ding Dong, who
joined him on the Live.
Dancehall Mag said some
fans continued to heap praises
on The Doctor and the Grungadzilla,
and called for the
next clash to be between Sizzla
and Capleton or Shaggy
and Sean Paul, “while those
from Trinidad clamored for Soca
artistes to be featured.”
“There was an uproar, though,
when Ludacris posted Jamaican
flags and strong-arm icons,
under Verzuz’ Instagram post,
apparently in a show of recognition,”
Dancehall Mag said. “The
American rapper has not been
in many Jamaicans good books
after he made unsavory statements
about the island following
the Beenie-Bounty clash.
“The unforgiving Jamaicans
on the post, still seething over
Ludacris’ jest that their country
as the ‘murder capital of the
world’, turned on him like harbor
sharks,” it added.
“Ludacris was also rebuked
by other users like lesasoundz,
who said the rapper’s statements
were a blatant attempt to
downplay the accomplishments
of the dancehall veterans out of
sheer jealousy, because he and
his American compatriots were
incapable of putting on anything
close to the stellar performance
of Beenie and Bounty,” Dancehall
Mag continued.
Dancehall Mag said Ludacris
had made the comments to
comedian Affion Crockett in a
video clip that had been circulating
on Instagram to the effect
that Jamaica was the “Murder
capital of the world.”
“I don’t know what you all
just paid Bounty Killer and
Beenie Man… I am just hopin
that you all (did) because that’s
the murder capital of the world,”
Dancehall Mag quoted Ludacris
as saying.
Continued from Page 23
Anguilla minister
Rapper Chris ‘Ludacris’
Bridges.
REUTERS / Mario Anzuoni, File