Twenty-five years after our first offering of A Gift to the Nation – commemorating the 25th anniversary of Trinidad & Tobago’s independence in 1987 – our three choirs and bpTT commemorate Trinidad & Tobago’s 50th anniversary with A Gift to the Nation II at Queen’s Hall on July 14th and 15th.
A deliberate contrast to last year’s lavish production of Bizet’s Carmen, the programme features the exciting Caribbean premiere of Karl Jenkins‘ new contemporary classic, “The Armed Man (A Mass for Peace)”. This multi-media and multi-cultural work – commissioned for the UK’s Millennium celebrations – is particularly distinctive for its inclusion of multicultural literary, musical and visual elements, including a film developed exclusively for the work.
Complementing this one-hour work is a showcase of some of our nation’s most talented young people, as the group’s Music Festival Winners – including members of our new Children’s Choir – take centre stage with their winning performances. There will also be a tribute to a legend lost too soon, the one and only Whitney Houston.
Partnering with us on this production reflecting on the nation’s 50 years of independence is a decorated production team including Enrique Ali, Jane Carter, Leslie Clement, Desmond Waithe, Margaret Sheppard, Noble Douglas, Dave Williams, Randy Halfhide, Celia Wells, and Franklin Agarrat.
This year also marks 40 years of partnership between the us and primary sponsors bpTT. “BP Trinidad and Tobago has been keenly associated with the Marionettes for an incredible [40] years, and with each year the partnership has reached new heights of achievement. We are grateful for the opportunity to work with this group on projects that heal both mind and body, and we are happy that others can benefit through this partnership,” explained BP’s Robert Riley.
Added our production manager Joanne Mendes: “Without that support, the challenge of sustaining the choirs over a long period would have been a hundred times harder. This has been a model of thoughtful, well-targeted cultural support by a major corporation in Trinidad & Tobago.”
Tickets
Tickets for A Gift to the Nation II went on sale Sunday 24th June, and are regularly priced at $200 (reserved) and $150 (open plan). Tickets are available from members (email@marionetteschorale.com or 868-790-1751), and at the Queen’s Hall Box Office (tel: 868-624-1284), 12–6pm.
Showtimes at Queen’s Hall are 7:30pm on Saturday 14th and 5pm on Sunday 15th July.
Proceeds from A Gift to the Nation II go toward the Marionettes Property Fund, and the construction of Helios Hall, a secure rehearsal, storage and performance space for the group that it hopes to share with the national artistic community.
