The Shaping of Guyanese Literature – Breakfast at the Taitt’s

By Petamber Persaud –

Producers: “Growing up Caribbean”, a 13-episode television series; the Caribbean Poetry Project (Cambridge University), and the Ministry of Education with Janice Shinebourne – a silent partner.
Location: Dining room of Cara Lodge, previously the Taitt’s Family Home.

Cast: John Agard, Grace Nichols, Michael Gilkes, Petamber Persaud and the good ghosts of memories lurking within that architectural landmark of Georgetown.

Music: Sounds of Georgetown traffic, car alarms going with Dave Martins in the background.
Story and Screenplay: Petamber Persaud

It was Friday May 24, 2013, the final working day of the week before the long weekend holiday to mark Guyana’s 47th Independence anniversary. The holiday fell on Sunday May 26 so that meant, in our context, that Monday would be a holiday, thereby shortening the work days of the following week.
All off this meant that I had to rush in as much official business as possible.
It so happened that my first business of the day was completed without a hitch, freeing up some precious time. Next business of the morning was set for 1100 hours, so instead of going home and coming out again, I decided to stop at Cara Lodge on Quamina Street, to uplift two books sent to me by Janice Shinbourne.
Here I walked in on Grace Nichols, John Agard and Michael Gilkes sitting at breakfast. The ever-helpful maitre d’, Tulsi, offered me a platter of fruits and a glass of juice, so I joined the table.
There was so much to talk about that the conversation rapidly veered from subject to subject, but at times we would refocus on the engagements that brought us together.
Agard and Nichols were here to launch their recent books at the University of Guyana and also to attend the Caribbean Poetry Project conference to be staged at the International Conference Centre, Liliendaal. The Caribbean Poetry Project is a collaborative effort between Cambridge University and the University of the West Indies. During the conference, Agard (along with other notable poets) would also conduct a poetry workshop.
During breakfast, Nichols was considerate enough to interrupt her breakfast in order to get to her room and return with the books Shinebourne sent me – “Timepiece” and “The Last English Plantation”. She also brought me her new collection of poems for children, “Sun Time Snow Time”.
Later Agard slipped out to get me a copy of his book, “Travel Light Travel Dark”, returning with word that he just ran into Dave Martins.
In receipt of that bit of information, Gilkes excused himself from the table to meet with Dave Martins – they were preparing to depart Georgetown for the interior of Guyana – the location for the shooting of Gilkes’ film, “Maira and the Jaguar People”.
The breakfast party broke up and we shift to the lobby where Michael Gilkes was already with Dave Martins preparing to head to location for the film shoot.
About 1030 hours, I took my leave from such illustrious gathering of award winning artists in poetry, film, and music.
But the cameras kept rolling…..
*Note: As I prepared this article, the title of a 1961 movie, “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” adapted from a novella of the same name written by Truman Capote, kept flashing through my mind. Furthermore, each of us at breakfast was in one way or the other connected to the cinematographic art.
Michael Gilkes is a filmmaker in the process of producing another movie, the first in the series of “Growing up Caribbean” titled “Maira and the Jaguar People: A Story from the Guyana Rainforest.” The movie will showcase the lifestyle of one of Guyana’s first nations, the Makushi Amerindians.
Grace Nichols’s collection of poems “I Is a Long-Memoried Woman” was adapted to 50-minute video produced by Ingrid Lewis in 1990. The film chronicles the history of slavery through the eyes of Caribbean women in spoken word, song and dance. It shows the conditions on sugar plantations, the unfolding acts of defiance and the rebellion which led to eventual freedom. It tells of the African woman fighting for her space in society.
John Agard”s “Goldilocks on CCTV” was written from a cinematographic angle; just imagine Miss Goody Two- Shoes getting caught on CCTV… and Goldilocks caught on camera breaking into a house….
My book, “The Balgobin Saga”, was adapted into a docudrama produced by the Centre for Communication Studies, University of Guyana. So it was not too difficult to tweak with the title of that 1961 movie and come up with a title of this article.
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