The National Drama Association of T&T (NDATT) has appointed three new members to the Executive Board. They are Dese Simon as Treasurer, Edwin Erminy as Education Officer and Lorraine Nero as Area Representative for Tobago. The new positions were announced at our Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) held on May 20, 2018.
Additionally, Ria Carrera-Toney demitted the post of Assistant Secretary to take up that of Resource Development Officer. Wendell Etienne, Triston Wallace, Safa Niamat-Ali and Paula Lindo retain their positions as President, Vice President, Secretary and Public Relations Officer respectively.
In his opening remarks, Wallace; who served as the meeting’s Chair, said, “I want to share the words of Dr. Efebo Wilkinson, who in reference to our current situation noted – The Executive now finds itself working overtime simply to maintain the organization and keep the membership hopeful that a new day is truly here. Each position on the Executive is at this time a full-time job that is being done by a committed, part-time person. – This demand, coupled with other emerging commitments in the personal and/or professional lives of some of our elected team members, resulted in their inability to continue their work with us in an official capacity.”
The EGM was called to vote on a motion to shift NDATT’s financial year from April 1 to March 31 to October 1 to September 30, in line with the Government’s fiscal year. The motion was successfully moved, with 25 votes for, none against, no abstentions and no spoilt ballots.
CLICK HERE for Minutes and Reports of the EGM
The Association then launched its new project, The Business of the Arts Education Workshop Series, spearheaded by Education Officer Edwin Erminy. The series is geared toward developing the skills within the NDATT, so our members may have a competitive edge in T&T’s diverse theatre landscape. The first cycle of workshops will be held every other Saturday over a six week period and will be free to NDATT members.
The first instalment of the series focused on Social Media Marketing, and was facilitated by Michelle Eng Leang, a Brand Development Specialist, Social Media Influencer and Writer with TT Chatterbox. During the workshop, participants learned about using social media to market themselves, their productions and their careers to potential audiences. Eng Leang said dramatists are all storytellers, and they should use these skills and the determination they bring to their craft to engage their audiences.
Queen’s Hall Technical Coordinator Curtis Bachan said “The workshop was an excellent experience for someone in my age group who would stay away from social media because we don’t think we understand it, and the presenter did a good job in explaining it to me in a way that I would now want to join Instagram.”
UTT student Narad Mahabir said the session was informative and encouraged him to use social media, while theatre practitioner Tafar Chia Lewis called the workshop “empowering, insightful and engaging” and long-time NDATT member Ifabunmi Rhonda Valentine-Charles said it was “edifying and motivational.”
Our recruitment of new members is ongoing. For more information on becoming a member CLICK HERE, connect with us on all social media platforms at @iamndatt or contact us HERE.
ABOUT THE NDATT
Incorporated under Act 33 of 1989, (The National Drama Association of Trinidad and Tobago (Incorporation) Act, 1989), NDATT is a collective of professional and amateur theatre practitioners who are committed to the development of the theatre industry in T&T.
Founded in 1980 by James Lee Wah, NDATT is the first and only statutory body that represents the interest of theatre in T&T. After a six to seven year hiatus, the NDATT was revitalized in July of 2017 with renewed purpose to the development of theatre in T&T.
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