Sunshine Theatre, Anguilla’s most renowned theatrical company, is actually forty-eight years in the theatre business. In honor of its achievements, over the years, the entity celebrated its 20th year awards banquet on the night of Saturday, February 9th.
The grand event, which was held at the Royale Caribbean Resort, was attended by a fair cross-section of the Anguilla public who turned out to support the stellar work of President Felix Fleming and his wife, Co-President Mona Fleming, and to show their appreciation for Anguilla’s culture and fine arts.
Felix Fleming, the Founder of Sunshine Theatre, writes, produces, directs and acts in dramatic performances of comedy drama and musicals. His aim is to extract the Anguillian way of life out of historical and cultural traits to portray images of yesteryear and tie them in with current lifestyles.
The prayer of invocation for the banquet was offered by Mr. Quincy Gumbs, and the National Song was led by Mr. Timothy Hodge. The program was moderated by Felix’s son, Mr. James Fleming, who summoned Ms. Shameica Hodge to present the welcome remarks.
After heartily welcoming the guests, Ms. Hodge went on to give a synopsis of the awards and their recipients. She explained: “The Sunshine Theatre Company has pioneered these awards in order to help with the Theatre’s ongoing efforts to honor and include all Anguillians who share as partners in the wonderful world of arts and culture. Our honorees this evening have been singled out as being extraordinary in the areas of arts, culture and community service.
“The first award to be presented is the Community Service Award. The person receiving this award has voluntarily given of their time, effort and talents outside of the regular work of employment, in carrying on the cultural norms of Anguilla. This person traditionally shares and helps wherever and whenever possible and this person helps to bring our community together. This award is sponsored annually by the Anguilla Social Security Board.
“The second award to be presented is the Artist of the Year Award. This honor is bestowed upon an individual who has contributed significantly to the arts in Anguilla in 2018. The sponsor of this award, ever since its inception, is the firm of D3 Enterprises.
“The third award is the Theatre Arts Award. The individual chosen for this award is selected exclusively for their work with the Sunshine Theatre. This includes work on stage, back stage, front of the house or any other auxiliary work in or for the theatre. The sponsor of this award is Webster Law.”
During the course of the event, the Community Service Award was bestowed on Miss DeeAnn Kentish Rogers, Anguilla’s Miss Universe Great Britain. She was serenaded by Miss Amethyst Davis who dramatically recited a poem, “I am a Woman”, that she had recently written.
The second award, the Artist of the Year, went to the ALHCS Steel Orchestra under the leadership of Michael Martin Junior. The group was serenaded by Sandra Liddie-Gumbs who befittingly rendered the song “Hero” in recognition of their emaculate performances on steel pan.
The third award —Theatre Arts— was received by Itasha Webster and Devon Carty. This pair made an indelible mark in their dramatic work in the Sunshine Theatre throughout recent times. They were serenaded by Ms Clara Reyes with the song, “Never Enough”.
The Keynote Address was delivered by DeAnn Kentish Rogers who highlighted the significance of theatre in any society, and she shone light upon the Sunshine Theatre Company as an entity that brings results to our search for the meaning of life. According to her, “In essence, theatre allows us to continue the single most important pursuit of human kind — the search for meaning in our lives.”
The event, overall, was a great success, and Mr. and Mrs. Felix Fleming extend thanks to all who have supported the annual endeavor.
