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| National Drama Association of Trinidad and Tobago | |
|---|---|
| Name | National Drama Association of Trinidad and Tobago |
| Formation | 1950s |
| Headquarters | Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago |
| Region served | Trinidad and Tobago |
| Leader title | President |
National Drama Association of Trinidad and Tobago The National Drama Association of Trinidad and Tobago is a theatrical organization based in Port of Spain that promotes stagecraft, dramatic literature, and performance arts across Trinidad and Tobago. It operates within a network of Caribbean cultural institutions, regional festivals, and educational establishments, collaborating with local and international playwrights, directors, and performers. The association engages with historical traditions from Carnival to choral societies and interfaces with national cultural policy, public arts venues, and media outlets.
The association traces roots to mid-20th-century theatrical movements influenced by figures from Trinidad such as Errol John, Thomas Baptiste, Derek Walcott, and institutions like the University of the West Indies and the Institute of Caribbean Studies. Early activity intersected with festivals such as Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago Film Festival, and venues including the Little Carib Theatre, National Academy for the Performing Arts, and community theatres in San Fernando, Port of Spain, and Arima. It evolved alongside cultural policies from ministries including the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts (Trinidad and Tobago) and engaged with publications like the Caribbean Quarterly and events such as Carifesta. International exchanges connected it with companies like the Royal Shakespeare Company, New York Theatre Workshop, and theatre practitioners from Jamaica, Barbados, Guyana, St Lucia, and Grenada.
The association’s mission emphasizes promotion of playwrights, production of plays, theatre education, and preservation of dramatic heritage through workshops, competitions, and public programming. Activities include playwriting competitions with ties to institutions like the Commonwealth Foundation, training sessions referencing techniques from Stanislavski, Bertolt Brecht, Augusto Boal, and contemporary practices from Anne Bogart and Tadeusz Kantor. It stages readings in partnership with bodies such as the British Council, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, and regional arts funds like the Caribbean Development Bank arts initiatives. The association curates anniversaries for dramatists associated with V.S. Naipaul, Sam Selvon, Brian Lara (cultural initiatives), and commemorates works featured at Edinburgh Festival Fringe and Venice Biennale.
Governance follows a council model with elected officers including a president, secretary, and treasurer, along with committees for programming, education, and archives. The association liaises with academic departments like the University of the West Indies Department of Creative and Festival Arts, conservatories such as the Trinidad Theatre Workshop, and youth organizations including Scouting Trinidad and Tobago for outreach. It manages relationships with performing spaces like the National Cultural Centre, Queen's Hall, and community halls in Point Fortin and Couva, while maintaining archival material linked to collections at the National Archives of Trinidad and Tobago and libraries like the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago Cultural Centre.
The association has produced and supported premieres, revivals, and festivals highlighting works by local and regional playwrights, staging productions in collaboration with companies such as Trinidad Theatre Workshop, Little Carib Theatre, NAPA, and visiting ensembles from Barbados Theatre Workshop and Central School of Speech and Drama. Signature programs include an annual national playwriting festival, youth theatre camps with curriculum influenced by National Theatre (United Kingdom) pedagogy, and staged readings for playwrights who have featured at New York Fringe Festival and CaribbeanTales International Film Festival. Past seasons have showcased adaptations of texts connected to writers such as Derek Walcott, Vernon Pedder, Merle Collins, and emergent voices discovered through competitions supported by Commonwealth Writers and the Prince Claus Fund.
Membership comprises actors, directors, playwrights, dramaturgs, designers, and technicians drawn from local troupes, university programs, and diaspora networks in London, Toronto, New York City, Miami, Kingston, and Bridgetown. Outreach targets schools in constituencies represented by MPs from Port of Spain North/St. Ann's West, San Fernando West, and cultural districts like Laventille and Woodbrook. Collaborative education programs partner with the Ministry of Education (Trinidad and Tobago), youth arts trusts, and international residency programs offered by institutions like Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and British Council.
The association administers awards and grants recognizing playwriting, directing, design, and youth contributions, aligned with regional prizes such as the Caribbean Tourism Organization cultural awards, Trinidad and Tobago National Awards, and festivals like Carifesta and NIFCA. Recipients have included artists who later received honors from bodies like Order of the British Empire, Commonwealth Prize nominees, and awardees celebrated in publications like the Guardian (Trinidad and Tobago), Trinidad Guardian, and covered by broadcasters such as CBC and BBC Caribbean.
Strategic partnerships extend to arts councils and cultural agencies including the Caribbean Cultural Centre, Caribbean Export Development Agency, Pan American Health Organization for community programming, and media partners such as Trinidad and Tobago Television (TTT) and Radio Trinidad. International collaborations have involved exchanges with the National Endowment for the Arts, Canada Council for the Arts, Arts Council England, and academic links with Goldsmiths, University of London, Columbia University School of the Arts, and the University of the West Indies.
Category:Theatre companies in Trinidad and Tobago