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Articles / About Camagüey / Patrimony / Harlequins in Camagüey
Monday, September 28, 2009
Harlequins in Camagüey
By Yolanda Ferrera Sosa
 Harlequins were comedians that,centuries ago in Italy, livened up the existence of their fellow men with jokes and even with their own clothes. So, the Office of the Historian of the City in Camagüey (OHCC) decided to name Harlequins to a group of children and teenagers, who are part of a socio-cultural project that cultivates different branches of the arts.
This month, the little ones are celebrating its 10th anniversary; a happy celebration that highlights the faithfulness of the Harlequins for the good art and the community.
Yadira Molina runs the Department of Sociocultural Projects in the OHCC and is a founding member of "what is possible to do when one channels vocations and wills into a purpose". “Regular gatherings of the group with its audience – she notes- contribute, in a way, so that instructors can combine theory and practice to cause an exposition of individual and collective work”.
With wisdom and perseverance –so essential for conducing these girls and boys- the art instructors have been working to teach the kids.
Discipline is fundamental in the group and to join it, candidates should pass an aptitude and attitude test.
From Monday to Friday, always after 5:30 p.m., one can see them gathered in diverse places of Camagüey’s urban center, which was proclaimed a World Heritage Site last year.
Each one of the members of Harlequins draws up the vocation for the arts and learns how to be better citizens.
The work of Harlequins is on the rise and it has been applauded even out of our provincial boundaries, for the group has gone on tour to provinces like Holguín, Las Tunas and Ciego de Ávila.
10 LOVELY YEARS
 Love is what you can perceive out of the work of these children whose age ranges from 7 to 15 years old.
With Harlequins, the Department of Sociocultural Projects stresses even more the interest for rescuing the indigenous patrimonial elements of Camaguey and Cuba. That’s why in choreographies, vocal performances, theatrical plays and plastic art oeuvres are present the essences of the local history.
The passion for reading is instilled in children, adolescents and adults, through a club conducted by oral narrator Zaida Montels Mendoza.
She acknowledges that this kind of work “helps to channel the talent and molds wills in children that shall eventually become full individuals in our society”.
Dance instructor Osmary Fustiel is a veteran in this trade… “we work hard – he says- but at the end, efforts are awarded” and mentions that the Dance in Urban Scenery International Festival Award –granted by the Office of the Historian of the City in Havana is among the group’s most important accolades.
The big challenge for those who run Harlequins is to guarantee the permanence of its membership when they finish primary school. Family supporter clubs are very helpful, for adults are called to meet there each month, in what turn to be a very edifying dialogue.
In their hearts, the Harlequins will always save this age,an age in which they melted their childhood with the artistic expressions. Undoubtedly, this will help them to be better citizens.
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