For many of you Carrie Fairweather-Belgrave is synonymous with the character Grand Tomasa in the Noh Matta Wat series. Well tonight at the Bliss Center, Fairweather-Belgrave's "Triple Treat Launch" will not only entertain you but also educate you through her book of poems "Parchment Pages"-Speak to Me in Poetry and a documentary on her life. Today, we spoke with Steve Berry, Co-Founder & Director of "Noh Matta Wat", and he told us about his novel "Tears" which is also being launched tonight and his experience working with Fairweather-Belgrave:
Steve Berry, Co-Founder & Director of "Noh Matta Wat"
"Tears" is actually an acronym for 'Teach Everybody All Racism Sucks' because basically it is about racism. It deals with racism and how racism is in indoctrinated into children in America at least especially when I was growing up. It tells the life of a story of 2 little boys - one black - one white, they meet one day while playing in sandbox and they could have been lifelong friends but their parents and society end up putting them on a collision course and the next time they meet 18 years old the meeting isn't as fun as the first one at 5. But I would hope for the Belizeans to get out of it of course is just an understanding of how things have work over in America. Of course I understand there is a lot of Belizeans in America or who have been to America love America. But a lot may not experience what i have experience growing up in Iowa. So it's just an incident of them seeing another side of America that doers exist."
Andrea Polanco
"You work with Carrie Fairweather Belgrave before. What was it like working with her on "Noh Matta Wat"?"
Steve Berry, Co-Founder & Director of "Noh Matta Wat"
"From when I first met Ms. Carrie, you know they say sometimes 'love at first site' Ms. Carrie is one of those people, she just endures you to her. She gets in front of the camera and takes the character of somewhere else. I have heard the poetry in the books which is even better because again it's her reflections; it's her attitude, her feelings that have been in the words. Yes I defiantly look forward of reading the book because there are a lot of poems in the book that I have not actually heard her recite. But like the documentary that I did on her, she goes the entire gamut of her life, once you start off talking about growing up being a little girl growing up in Dangriga, she talked about her first marriage which was very an abusive marriage - physical abusive, she talks about when she first went to the states and came back for her children and endure a lot more of being abuse and then going back to the states she talks about the troubles and the struggles she had and the successes that she had. I am a better person for having not only done the documentary but also cutting it, editing it, watching it now. It is a very inspirational piece of work."
The Book Signing starts at seven and you can get your personal copies for twenty dollars each. If you'd like to attend the Film Screening it will start at 7:30 and carries a cover charge of ten dollars.
