Art, Music, and Dance

There is an art and music program for prosthetic patients that takes place behind the Hanger Clinic.  It is described here:  http://www.hashaiti.org/blog/philip-craig-arts-project-haiti.  Tables are set up under a tree using extra walkers as table legs, and people work on whatever is the projét du jour.  The first project I saw was papier maché using the empty bags from the plaster that is used to make the forms for the prosthetic sockets. 

One of the leaders, Nicholas, who is the nephew of HAS director Ian Rawson, has organized several of the clients into a band called “Prestige,” which, coincidentally or not, is the name of the only beer available in Haiti.  These musicians are often playing while others are creating art.  They have a guitarist, a rapper, and several percussionists with shakers and hand drums.  They all sing, and they write a lot of their own music.  The ambience is lovely.  An added bonus is that a pair of women prepare a hot meal under a tarp for the clients each day.  On Friday, it was spaghetti with large discs of sausage, and fresh tomatoes and onions.

On Saturday night the band had a gig down the Corridor (the rocky path that leads from the main road to the hospital), and all were invited.  So a group of us set out in the dark, passing small market stalls, most empty for the night but a few still hopping.  We turned into a little lane that we never would have seen had we not been led there, turned another corner, and entered an outdoor space through a short corridor of overlapping cinder block walls.  At the entrance, I was corralled by a young woman who exclaimed and laughed, took me in her arms and started to lead me dancing!  My new friends Bob and Rose Love, a physician and nurse from Indiana who met at HAS in the 70’s and speak Creole, told me, “She wants to see a white person dance!”  With my white hair, I do stand out.  I tried to match her wiggling and grinding as she laughed and laughed.  Apparently, I was quite amusing!

The music space was a large raised concrete pad with a tin roof high overhead.  HAS created the space, and they use it for large meetings of visitors related to their many programs.  Next door is a hotel under construction for visitors to HAS.

There is a stage at the front and a bit of lighting.  The band had amps and mics, and did a great job with their performance.  They sang Bob Marley's, “No Woman, No Cry” along with their own work.  I was told that one song had to do with the earthquake:  “January 12^th happened, but we thank God we are still alive.”  Another was about Cholera:  “Cholera won’t stick to me because I wash my hands.”  And initiating a hugely important cultural shift, they sang, “We have to respect our handicapped friends.”

At the back of the space under some Christmas lights, I joined Bob and Rose, and another man greeted me with a kiss on the cheek.  “Come into the light," I said, "I need to know who's kissing me.”  It was Ian Rawson, the HAS director, whom I had met very briefly upon our arrival on Thursday night.  A friendly, passionate, and fascinating man, he invited us all to breakfast at his home the next morning.