It was a delightful and touching Sixteenth Annual Theatre Arts & Cultural Awards ceremony at the Anguilla Great House Beach Resort on Saturday, February 7. That was when Sunshine Theatre Company, whose principals are Felix and Mona Fleming, awarded three deserving persons for their separate outstanding contributions to Anguilla.
The classy presentation and banquet event, which rivalled any such award ceremony in the Caribbean region, attracted a large gathering, filling to capacity the specially-prepared formal seating and dining area. The ceremony was chaired by Mrs Joyce Kentish-Egan, QC, one of Anguilla’s well-respected legal personalities and an ardent supporter of the theatre arts. She took the opportunity to congratulate Mr and Mrs Fleming for organising the event, saying “this is what service and dedication is all about.”
Mr Timothy Hodge, a past honouree, was pleased to welcome the guests to the grand event and assured them of a delightful evening.
First on the list of awardees was Mr Colville Petty, OBE – teacher, author, historian, political scientist and owner/curator of Heritage Collection Museum. He received the Community Service Award. He was described in the ceremonial booklet as being “one of Anguilla’s leading writers” and “a significant contributor to the socio-political development of Anguilla and its people”.
He has had a long and distinguished career in the Anguilla Public Service. He served in such positions as Permanent Secretary, Secretary to Executive Council, Director of Social Security, Labour Commissioner, Deputy Governor, Acting Governor and Supervisor of Elections.
In inviting him to accept his award, Mrs Kentish-Egan spoke about Mr Petty as having been a dedicated teacher, and thanked him for his contribution to her education and for recording the history of the island. She added that Anguilla was proud of him for his service.
The presentation of a plaque and a cheque for US$400 to Mr Petty was done by Mr Clement Ruan, Manager of D3 Enterprises. He referred to the award recipient as a “living library” in Anguilla, noting his extensive “knowledge of any subject” and his willingness to impart it to anyone wishing to be edified.
Mr Petty was serenaded by Ms Sandra Liddie. Responding, he extended special thanks to Sunshine Theatre Company for selecting him for the 2014 Community Service Award. “I am indeed humbled and honoured,” he said in part. “It has long been said that no prophet is honoured in his own country, but Sunshine Theatre has proven, several years now, that there is little truth in that saying. Here we have a local private institution honouring local people – honouring prophets in their own country. For this, Sunshine Theatre should be loudly applauded and should take much pride.” He went on to speak about his personal knowledge of Felix and Mona, and of the establishment and commendable work of Sunshine Theatre Company.
The recipient of the Artist of the Year Award was presented to the 2014 Calypso Monarch, Keith (Repeater) Carty. He also received a plaque and a cheque for US$400 presented by Conch Bay Development. Repeater was described in the booklet as being a “consummate calypso performer”. At the age of 14 he entered the Anguilla Junior Calypso Competition in 1978. Two years later he captured the crown and, in 1989, he became Anguilla’s Senior Calypso Monarch. King Repeater won the St Maarten Calypso Crown in 1992 and 1993 and also the Anguilla crown three times, his most recent win being in 2014. He was also First Runner-Up in the Leeward Islands Calypso Competition in 2004 and Second Runner-Up in 2009 and 2014.
Repeater was serenaded by Anguillian female calypsonian, Rebecca Webster (Queen B), who sang one of her compositions. Later on, Repeater delivered one of his own popular songs. Responding to his selection for the award, he commented: “I am happy to accept this award with humility. To the Almighty, I thank Him for giving me the strength, the health and the energy to do what I have done for the past 36 years; and to my family and friends, I thank you also for your unwavering support throughout my entire career; and, of course, to the Sunshine Theatre Company – I would like to thank you for the recognition. I am pleased. Continue to do the good work.”
The recipient of the Theatre Arts Award was Ms Shellya Rogers, Programme Officer responsible for Culture and Arts at the Department of Youth and Culture. In 2013 she graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Arts Management, with a minor in Political Science and Business Administration, from the University of Wisconsin.
Ms Rogers was exposed to the stage when she was recruited by the All-Ah-Wee Young Theatre Players in 2001 and was later nurtured by Mrs Sarah Francis, her mentor. She is the former Miss CCB Talented Teen; Miss Caribbean Talented Teen; and Miss Anguilla, and has performed in a number of regional competitions.
She was the recipient of a plaque and US$500 from Webster’s Law Office whose principal is Ms Palmavon Webster, who commended Ms Rogers and the other two awardees for their contributions and Sunshine Theatre Company for honouring them.
Ms Rogers was grateful to Sunshine Theatre Company for awarding her. She also took the opportunity to thank Mrs Francis for mentoring her. “She dedicated her time, her energy and her money to ensure that I could [succeed],” she stated. “As a result, I entered a number of pageants and she was with me for all of them…and dedicated herself to my success.”
Mr Felix Fleming, in presenting the award to Ms Rogers, said the ceremony had brought together various persons from the community to applaud a select group of outstanding community personalities. “By honouring these three individuals, we demonstrate our sincere appreciation for them…We appreciate them as well for setting up themselves…as role models in our community,” he added.
The feature address was delivered by Dr Ronya Foy-Connor, Gender Development Coordinator in Anguilla. She spoke about the promotion of arts and culture in Anguilla, and her own experience in that field in New York, where she grew up, as well as in South Africa where she was on a Service Learning Trip. She was introduced by Mrs Mona Fleming on behalf of Sunshine Theatre Company. Excerpts of Dr Foy -Connor’s address are printed elsewhere in this edition of The Anguillian.
