Page 20 - TRINBAGO2023 MAGAZINE

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The ceremony But most importantly, Maharaj said, the presentation also
portrayed the history of the Commonwealth and
was engaging with attempted to thread that delicate relationship dating back

themes that told the story to its controversial beginnings.
from slavery to Carnival, “We are a people that have so many different facets that
can connect to so many different territories in the former
captivating both the colonies, the members of the Commonwealth,” said
young and not-so-young Maharaj, “I think it was very interesting to show how these
different cultures, from those who came, have settledon
audiences our space and show that it still connects to the wonderful
region itself. That’s one part. The other part, the storyline
we chose to take is to base the story of the
well as the classical charatcers Tan Tan and Saga Commonwealth or the
Boy figures. The Tan Tanettes and some relationship of the
representations from Lost Tribe also formed part of Commonwealth, the
the exhibition, while Maharaj and company, for the telling of that story in a
first time, also designed some Moko Jumbies to Carnival setting.” That
represent the athletes in the seven sporting relationship includes
disciplines on offer at the Trinbago2023 CYG. touching on the history
of slavery - the history
“It is a story that our children who will be the of the Moko Jumbies
children of our athletes and the people who are as sentinels walking
there, that they would also have been discovering across the waters
and many of the things that we discussed - the following the ancestors
pieces of poetry, the allegories, the parallels that we to the Caribbean -was
were drawing in subtle different ways,” Maharaj “very subtle but it is a
explained, “ I hope that if any of those notes were note I think I needed
hit with one person and another note was hit with to add in there.”
another person, I would feel that at that point we
have been successful. I hope that at the end of this, Maharaj hoped the
that when people saw and (experienced) this, they presentation struck the overarching overall heritage notes
would have felt they were liberating themselves and that would leave a lasting impression on all audiences.
felt proud to be Trinidadian.”
“I hope they felt proud to be coming from the heritage that
we come from … and I hope that T&T when we look back
on it, as a Games, there were things that we are
remembered for. As a ceremony there were
things that we are remembered for, ” Maharaj
surmised,“

I hope that the way we told the story
that of liberation and our
togetherness that, our strengths
together, the threads that we
drew between all the different
islands, between all the
different spaces that make
us one, I hope that was
what we are remembered
for, I hope we are
remembered for our
story -telling ability.”