Arts: RIP Louis Marriott

Actor, broadcaster, director, writer, and historian Louis Marriott passed away on Monday at age 81.

Marriott had been ailing for some time and was recently hospitalised for the second time in weeks with pneumonia. He died following complications.

In paying tribute, Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport Olivia 'Babsy' Grange described Marriott as a multitalented and creative man who had contributed much to Jamaica's culture.

"Louis was one of the last great bands of local theatre practitioners, including the late Trevor Rhone, Charles Hyatt and Lloyd Reckord, to have left us in recent times. It was heartbreaking to receive news of his passing on Emancipation Day," Grange said.

Opposition Leader Portia Simpson Miller said Marriott worked as press secretary to former Prime Minister Michael Manley in the 1970s and as director of publications and advertising with the Agency for Public Information, the forerunner to the Jamaica Information Service.

"Louis Marriott will be remembered as a Jamaican patriot and a consummate creative professional who served his country selflessly through his dedication to his creative passions, including the arts and theatre, in particular," Simpson Miller said.

PROMINENT PLAYWRIGHT

Born May 22, 1935, Marriott was one of Jamaica's most prominent playwrights and historians. He wrote and produced several radio and television plays and documentary broadcast programmes and films, as well as wrote and directed several plays, among them Pack of Jokers, Playboy and Bedward. Many of his radio programmes have been broadcast throughout the English-speaking world.

Marriott also lectured in Britain on Commonwealth and Caribbean affairs, and served as press secretary to the late Prime Minister Michael Manley, as well as in several other key roles.

He was also the executive officer of the Michael Manley Foundation, and member of the Performing Right Society, Jamaica Federation of Musicians, and founding member of the Jamaica Association of Dramatic Artists.

Marriott leaves behind widow Erica; daughters Lavinia and Karen; family and friends.

Tributes from around the world continue to pour in for Marriott.

Lit: Jamaican among 2016 Commonwealth Short Story Shortlist

Confluence, Nova Gordon-Bell (Jamaica)

Confluence.
C—o—n—f—l—u—e—n—c—e
Noun.
Union; flowing together; rivers merging; the coming together of ideas. the coming together of factors.
Confluence.
Miss Evelyn doctor give her a prescription for blood sugar and it make her forget who she is and where she was. She walk out of her house into the street in her night gown and start talk to people who nobody can see. My employer, Miss Kaylie, go for Miss Evelyn, pack her and her grip in the back of the car and bring her back from country to the house in Kingston.

Miss Evelyn is Miss Kaylie grand-mother youngest sister and Miss Kaylie say she owe everything she have to Miss Evelyn. Miss Evelyn living with us now so Miss Kaylie can take care of her. 

Nova Gordon-Bell is a graduate of the University of the West Indies, Mona, where she studied English Literature, Media and Communication. She has won several awards for her short-stories and poetry. Having pursued a career in public information and advertising, Nova currently teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in media, communication and creative writing.  A lecturer at the University of Technology, Jamaica, Nova lives in Jamaica with her sons, Benjamin and Joshua.

Literary Arts: Commonwealth shortlist revealed

The 2015 Commonwealth Short Story Prize has just announced its shortlist. This year it attracted nearly 4000 entries – a record number. The judging panel, comprised of six acclaimed writers–Leila Aboulela, Fred D’Aguiar, Marina Endicott, Witi Ihimaera, Bina Shah and chair Romesh Guneseker–chose twenty-two stories (from eleven countries) that reflect the breadth and quality of writing in the Commonwealth today. The judges will announce the five regional winners drawn from the shortlist on April 28. The shortlist includes four Caribbean writers: Alecia McKenzie, K Jared Hosein, Toodesh Ramesar, and Darren Doyle.

Here are the four writers with a passage from their work:

Alecia McKenzie is a Jamaican writer, artist and journalist. Her books include the short story collections Satellite City and Stories from Yard, and the novel Sweetheart. Alecia has participated in art exhibitions in New York, London and other cities, and, as a journalist, has reported on human rights, gender, development, culture and the environment. She is the founder and editor of Southern World Arts News (SWAN), an online site that provides information about the arts.

Toodesh Ramesar is a writer and literature teacher from Trinidad and Tobago. He has won several prizes including the 2005 Derek Walcott and University of West Indies Prize for Poetry. His work has been featured in the collection Six Trinidadian Poets and the literary journal The Caribbean Writer.

Darren Doyle was born in Trinidad and Tobago. He has a Journalism BA from the University of Sheffield, and feels most at home writing, and maintaining the blog,Worksp_ce, at www.workspce.com. He is currently working on getting his first novel published.

Kevin Jared Hosein is a poet, writer and science teacher in Trinidad and Tobago and a graduate of the University of the West Indies. He illustrated and published a book for younger audiences, Littletown Secrets, in 2013. His short stories have been featured in Caribbean anthologies such as Pepperpot and Jewels of the Caribbean.

For full description and list of writes, see http://www.commonwealthwriters.org/2015-commonwealth-short-story-prize-shortlist/