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Mrs. Gloria CameronPromoting Jamaican folk artMBy DONALD KABEBALONDON:I HERE ARE FEW cultural activities tu London “south of the river'* without Mr*. Gloria Ctmeron beta? Involved. Whether* It Is *• school occasion, a charity function or some stare entertainment, Jamaica-b orn Mrs. Cameron and her Caribbean Drama and Folk Group take some part in the show, [here are 2D members of the group, in eluding Mrs. Cameron's -two children. Chris, her 15-year-old son, is already a proflcieafc pianist All the group members give their services free and provide their own costumes.The demand for the group is heavy and its programme goes beyond the usual winter season, far into the year. Its members present drama, dan-c«s;bnd lt;Jaribbean. songs; and Tty! to project the Islands' culture and show it to London audience?. There are. of course, young people of purelyCaribbean ancestry who havenever been in the West Indies ■and know as little about their culture as any fourth-gonera-in the heart of London1, tion Cockney lt;a person born Mrs. Cameron. % Community Relations Officer with the London Borough of Lambeth, says: *‘\Ve try to show the London public what our islands' culture Is like because there are of course very few people here who know the West Indies. This part of London is racially mixed and, as we try to get to know each other, we have to know each other’s cultures before we can mingle.”Mrs. Cameron's group always takes part in the Lambeth Drama Festival. It also tours schools, teacher training colleges and universities. And it seen in the Greater London Council’s annual Easier Parade. in Battersea Park. Concerts in the local town hali tn which the group has taken part have been sponsored by the.Arts Council — a Government institution entrusted with funds to give practical lt;and very selective! encouragementto cultural pursuits. In the case of Mrs. Cameron's group, the first irstere4 was in a programme of folksongs and gos-peL songs — though local appreciation also centres on its presentation of the folklore of the West Indies.A pantomime which * was running earlier in the year, at the Dark and Light Theatre in Brixion, South London, i* called “Ananci and Brer Englishman** and it was written by Gloria. Cameron, who went to Britain from Jamaica in 1957 to join her husband.‘•While bringing up my family i wanted to help the community.'’ she says. My basic feeling was to cultivate interest in West Indian cultural. life.But Mrs:. Cameron has also a very good grasp of the day-to-day practical help that needs to be given to some people. She helped with orphaned children in one of the Dr. Barnardo's homes and waslater asked by the Lambeth Council to help out with itsfoster-child problems. After this she was offered a course sn social work and when she had finished her training was . appointed as assistant community Relations Officer for Lambeth .Her latest project is the, formation of an inter-racial’ voutn f steel band -- and this is likely to be as popular as all her other activities. —BISif you areto luondoitake the sroute viaParis witair FrancAir nnn ct-nn
Newspaper Details
Kingston Gleaner
Kingston, Kingston, JM
Mon, Aug 19, 1974
Page 21
Full Page
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USA 13 Feb 2023
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