Literary Festival Closes/Tabu Hails David Edgecome

The Alliouagana Festival of the Word.. AFW LitFest 2021 concluded on Saturday evening with a celebration of local authors here and abroad.

The Author’s Gala was held at the Montserrat Cultural Centre in Little Bay, where Montserratian authors were able to promote and discuss their work.

A moment of silence was given at the beginning for playwright David Edgecombe, who died on Thursday, while a tribute was also given to Eric Jerome Dickey, an American author who participated in AFW festivals on Montserrat in the past.

Face-to-face interviews took place involving Sir Howard Fergus, Jennifer Joseph, Sharmen Greenaway, Norman Ryan and Nerissa Golden on their books.

Authors such as Edwin ‘Red Ride’ Martin, Shirley Osborne and the Alliouagana Singers were interviewed virtually and they were also given the opportunities to discuss and promote their books.

At the end of the gala, attendees were able to buy or order the author’s works, as well as speak and take photos with the authors.

Alliouagana Festival of the Word, which promotes reading and literature, is held on Montserrat in November each year.In related News….

Artist and performer Kelvin Tabu Duberry has hailed the accomplishments of David Edgecombe.

Edgecombe, a playwright and educator died last week.

Duberry’s first encounter with the cultural ambassador was as a student at the Montserrat Secondary School in the late 1970’s.

He says the icon has left an indelible mark on his life and the life of Montserratians.

Edgecombe has written over a dozen plays which have been staged throughout the Caribbean, in Canada, and in Nigeria.

He also produced the Festival Hits album that featured the top calypso songs from the 1979 festival season.

David Edgecombe taught Theatre, Playwriting and Directing at the University of the Virgin Islands. He was also a former Director of the Reichhold Center for the Arts in St. Thomas, USVI.