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Seymour eulogised ... From page 11
Kendall, surely lived up to his stage moniker, holding his listeners in thrall with his song ‘Beauty and beauty is not enough’ and providing the musical refrain for ‘Lulu’ which was presented by Jackman. The National Dance Company worked along with Lawrence, dramatising the piece ‘Gethsemane’ which was beautifully spoken by her. Daughter and niece, of the honoree, respectively, Joan Seymour and Jacqueline de Weever honoured the deceased with several poems, among them ‘For my Father’, ‘For Martin and Wilson’ and ‘Tomorrow belongs to the People’, after which they were given a gracious bow by Farrier himself, to loud applause from the gathering. Acting Chief Librarian, Ms. Emiley King praised her predecessor’s contribution to the occasion, noting that Thompson had, at the beginning of the National Library centennial year 2009, embarked on a series of activities to promote the outstanding works and achievements of Guyanese literary luminaries. The institution hosted a number of literary evenings under
varying themes including ‘Oral Traditions’, ‘A Morning with E.R. Braithwaite’ and ‘To Sir with Love: A Guyanese Version’, to name a few. Those occasions sought to remind the young and not so young of the historical and cultural significance of oral and folk traditions in Guyana and celebrate Guyanese literary icons. King also spoke of Thompson’s advocacy of reading and literary arts and recalled her efforts to nurture a life-long love of reading in the young, with projects such as an annual Champion Readers Competition and Essay and Short Story Completion. PROMINENTLY DISPLAYED A book of condolences for Thompson was open at the event where a photograph of her was prominently displayed in the foyer. As is known, Arthur James Seymour has made an enormous contribution to the literature of Guyana and the Caribbean. As well as a prolific writer of poetry, he was an anthologist, editor, publisher, broadcaster, cultural historian and literary enabler. His poetry work included ‘Verse’ (1937), ‘More Poems’ (1940),
GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday January 14, 2014 Visitors fascinated by an exhibition of Seymour’s work that was launched at the ‘See More Poetry’ event