Playwrights Workshop Trinbago’s (PWT) Monthly Readers Theatre Series, featured the first Wednesday of every month, presents the reading of ‘INDEPENDENCE DAY’, a play by Owen Baptiste. The reading takes place at the Trinidad Theatre Workshop, 6 Newbold Street, St Clair on July 4, starting at 7 pm.
Owen Baptiste has been in the world of media since 1951, moving through the ranks from trainee Reporter to Head of various publishing houses, including the Trinidad Express, of which he was a co-founder. He also led the start-up of the Jamaica Observer in 1993, and pioneered indigenous publishing in his Inprint Caribbean Ltd. and Caribbean Information Systems and Services. In 2013 he was the recipient of the National Icon Award for Media by the government of T&T, in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of T&T’s Independence.
The first published play by Baptiste, ‘INDEPENDENCE DAY’ explores some of the historical high points over the 500 years after Christopher Columbus first arrived on the shores of T&T. It was written in 1992 for the 25th Anniversary celebration of the Trinidad Express Newspaper and was published in book form in 2016. The characters include notable Spanish, British and post-Independence figures such as Christopher Columbus, Bartolomeo De Las Casas, Sir Thomas Picton, Tubal Uriah ‘Buzz’ Butler, A.N.R. Robinson and Dr. Eric Williams, to name a few. The playwright places the historical characters in modern-day settings and through dialogue explores significant contributions of each historical period to T&T’s development.
PWT is honoured to pay tribute to the work of this national icon in the July instalment of the Series.
The PWT, in partnership with the Trinidad Theatre Workshop and The Trinidad and Tobago Performing Arts Network, is inviting actors, playwrights, directors, producers and the general public to the reading to partake in the reading and discussion of the play. The event will be held on July 4 2018, 7 pm at the Trinidad Theatre Workshop, 6 Newbold Street, St Clair. Admission is FREE but Space Is Limited.
Come one. Come all. Bring a friend.
PWT reads new stage, screen, and radio plays on the first Wednesday of every month. For further information email playwrightsworkshoptt@gmail.com; or call (868) 351-6293; or find us on Instagram @playwrightsworkshoptt.
About the Playwrights Workshop Trinbago
Playwrights Workshop Trinbago (PWT) is an organization coordinated by playwrights for the making of plays. The organization is dedicated to the memory and work of renowned Trinidadian scholar, academic, theatre historian, playwright and director ERROL HILL (1921-2003) and Tobagonian poet, playwright, essayist and journalist ERIC ROACH (1915-1974).
This year, the workshop initiated in 2003 by Tony Hall with support from Trinity in Trinidad Global Learning Site of Trinity College, Hartford, C.T. Lordstreet Theatre’s Jouvay Institute and the National Drama Association of Trinidad and Tobago, celebrates its 15th Anniversary. It continues to have its Monthly Readers Theatre Series on the first Wednesday of every month, at the Trinidad Theatre Workshop. Playwrights and aspiring playwrights are reminded that plays read at the Monthly Readers Theatre Series will qualify for further development at the Annual New Play Festival in the following year.
The Trinidad and Tobago Performing Arts Network 