International Music: Two members of the T&T Guardian family are set to join a New York-based cast in an international performance of the legendary opera, Porgy and Bess at Budapest, Hungary, this August. The youngest of the cast is 19-year-old Leandra Head, daughter of Guardian former chief photographer and Reuters correspondent Andrea De Silva. Marvin Smith, Guardian associate editor, is also set to take on one of the semi-principal roles of the opera which features the story of Porgy, a disabled black beggar living in the slums of Charleston, South Carolina. The show deals with Porgy’s attempts to rescue Bess from the clutches of her violent and possessive lover. Head: It’s an honour In an interview, Head said it was an honour to be on a cast from the New York-based team, Living Arts Inc. She said when Trinidadian Anne Fridal offered the opportunity to be on the show, she was estatic. The three-time Sanfest first-place winner said it was her dream to perform on an international stage. Although she is not as experienced as the other cast members, Head said it was a learning experience. “This is one of the biggest things I’ve ever done. It is really exciting. I can see myself doing international performances. I enjoy performing and singing,” Head said. She explained that the first time she ever performed on stage was on Twelve and Under when she was nine years old. “It was terrifying for me, but I enjoyed it,” she said. She has also written songs which she said were too personal to share. “I like songs with deep meaning. If the song has emotion you need to find it and work it into your voice. You have to connect with the song and feel the meaning of it,” Head said. She said singing relaxes her. “I have written poetry and songs but they are too personal to share. I want to produce my own songs. One day when I am ready, I will let people see what I have written. For now, I don’t want to share it because you make yourself vulnerable if you let people into your heart,” Head said. Recalling some of her earlier singing experiences, the teenager said one of her teachers at Mucurapo Girls’ primary school encouraged her to sing. She later joined Sanfest competitions and placed first three times in a row. Head said one of her greatest challenges was to master the 15 songs which are part of the Porgy and Bess performance. “I spend between four to five hours practising. The songs have a lot of different tempos and changes in melodies and keys,” Head said. The teenager, who left for New York on Saturday, said rehearsals will be held in New York and also in Hungary, where there will be three shows. Smith: Govt needs to get more involved Meanwhile, Smith said he, too, was excited about the show. Unlike Head, he has already performed internationally in Washington, London and England. Smith, who has been singing since the age of eight, said he acted in the Porgy and Bess show when it came to Trinidad in 2005. “I am fortunate that I already know the role because I did it before. The Living Arts Inc has been performing since the 1980s and the cast is well respected,” Smith said. He said the songs were comfortable for him to do. Smith said T&T had extraordinary talent, but many performers are unable to make it to an international stage because of financial constraints. “I would like to see more involvement from the Government because I have never seen anyone get complete government funding. They always have to make it on their own and because of this many good talent is lost. The Government should provide avenues for people to go abroad,” Smith said. Smith, who won several awards at the Billenial Music Festival in 2008 as well as the best vocalist award for Scouting for Talent in 2003, said he was fortunate to get international exposure. He also performed in Geraldine Connor’s Carnival Messiah show in England in 2007. Smith also sang at the Kennedy Centre in Washington in 2008. Also in 2008, he produced a CD of classical compositions called An Enchanted Evening.
Posted on: Sun, 28 Jul 2013 06:33:37 +0000
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