Kimmy Stoute-Robinson, Trinidad and Tobago's cultural ambassador, advocate

KIMMY Stoute-Robinson eats, sleeps and breathes culture. Well, probably not literally, but the range of her expertise would lead you to believe so.

Throughout her life, she has been involved in dance and choreography, acting, stage management, costume designing and styling, directing and hosting. And with her decades of being immersed in TT’s rich culture, she sees herself as a cultural advocate and ambassador.

The 42-year-old grew up in Belmont and attended the Newtown Girls’ RC Primary School and St Francois Girls’ College.

She said she was a disciplined but active and inquisitive child.

“A lot of things would grab my attention. For example, my mom was a seamstress and used to attend sewing classes and take me with her…I would sit in the back and have my book and my own fabric and try to follow what they were learning," she told WMN.

This led to her sewing clothes for her dolls back then, proud of what she learnt – not knowing years later, she would become a stylist.

But she also recalled being fascinated by the beats and rhythms of African drums near her home as folk dancers rehearsed for the Best Village competition.

As this fascination grew, “My mom carried me across and started falling in,” she said.

“So from learning, jumping in the people nightly classes,” she started with a laugh, “...The dance teacher there turned out to also be the dance teacher at Newtown Girls. So when she realised, she told my mom that Malick Folk Performing Company was starting a junior company and that if I was interested, I could join.”

And they agreed.

In addition to dance, she got to experience drama and theatre there.

“You weren’t limited to just one discipline. And from seeing my talent there, they would also suggest things that I could do.”

Her involvement with the group soon opened doors to other performance opportunities like Calypso Spektakula's Women of Substance.

“I can’t remember the exact year but I was one of the youngest to perform in it. I remember Denyse Plummer, Denyse Belfon – all these stalwarts were performing. And then little me came to do a monologue.”

She got the chance to attend the senior group rehearsals as she was among those “advanced” enough in the performing arts to do so, according to her tutors.

It was there she got to participate in the very competition for which the rehearsals grabbed her attention – Best Village.

This, she said, brought her to her first “big stage” at the Queen’s Park Savannah.

Her talent also landed her a role in local author Earl Lovelace’s dramatisation of his book The Dragon Can’t Dance in 2002, where she shared the stage with late rapso legend Brother Resistance (Lutalo Masimba).

Young Kimmy also grew fond of portraying traditional Carnival characters including the pierrot grenade, jab molassie, baby doll, dame lorraine, fancy sailor and burrokeet, among others.

And over the years, she has even won the National Carnival Commission’s traditional mas competition.

She also participated in the re-enactment of the Canboulay riots.

When she officially joined Malick’s senior group, one mentor noticed she could “successfully go really, really low” during limbo rehearsals.

“Domingo Moreno or, as everyone knew him, Short Pants, was the one who took me under his wings and started a limbo class. So a few of us as well used to go to practice, and he'd teach us the stretches and the form, etc.”

She went on to participate in the Junior National Limbo Competition, winning a few times.

And when she was finally eligible for the senior category, she won five times.

“It would have been five in a row but there was one break in between because I took up the opportunity to travel and perform in the US' Universoul Circus.”

She said after graduating from secondary school, the circus was doing a talent search for a group of limbo dancers for their show.

“I remember we had to tape videos for them to see. We were costumed and everything and we sent it up.”

They got the chance to spend a year with the circus with the group which was eventually named The Limbo Mamas.

“The entire act was called Caribbean Flava,” she added.

Continuing, she said, “We were one of the first set of TT people to be part of Universal, and that was my first year, away from home. It was quite informative.”

Being 18 at the time, she said it was that year she truly “grew up.

“Seeing the world outside of TT, being away from your parents for such a long period of time…It was interesting.

“I learnt a lot about standing my ground and not having people push me over…Sometimes I still needed the comfort of calling home, crying…all of that was part of it.”

But in addition to the culture shock and now being fully responsible for her own well-being, she said working with the team helped her better understand what it takes to make a good show.

“I learnt what is required technically, in the background in terms of support, what would make an excellent show or the best show…Even after I finished performing, I would go and hang out with the lights crew or the sound people or go in the audience and watch the show and see what the stage management is doing…

“It was significant for me in my growth as an entertainer and what I stand for when it comes to professionalism in the arts.”

She performed in several countries, including in South Africa for late activist and politician Nelson Mandela’s 83rd birthday celebrations.

Stoute-Robinson has a bachelor’s degree in both theatre arts and Carnival studies from UWI, St Augustine. While at UWI, she choreographed and performed for the school’s 2008 staging of Dr Lester Efebo Wilkinson’s play Bitter Cassava.

Her combined experiences have also led to her landing a job as cultural programme co-ordinator in the Tourism Ministry.

In addition to performing, she said she is thankful to also have a corporate job that is within the field she loves.

“It’s been a plus and I think people who know me understand and know why they could come and ask me for advice on everything (about culture). Because the plethora of things I’ve done has continued to inform me into programmes on behalf of the ministry, to give suggestions…it comes from that place – not just from being behind the scenes but from doing it as well.”

She has also used this knowledge to teach at the secondary and tertiary levels over the years.

A household name and face in productions by rapso legends 3canal, she said she has been part of their annual shows since 2011. She was also the host of their 2025 show.

She recalled what led her to audition to join their supporting cast years ago.

“I remember attending their shows for multiple years and thinking, ‘I could do this, inno, boy.’”

She also got a chance to style/design costumes for the cast.

“Wendell (Manwarren), being the lovely mentor he is, saw my talent (in styling as well) and allowed me to do that.”

She said she is often praised for the amount of work she gets done behind the scenes.

When it comes to creative directing, she was one of the main people responsible for soca singer Shurwayne Winchester’s Groovy Soca Monarch-winning performance of Carnival Please Stay in 2008.

She was the creative director for bpTT Renegades Steel Orchestra’s 2022 Panorama-winning performance of Farmer Nappy’s Hookin Meh, and productions like Love Sax and All That Jazz 2: Da Mans Dem, Green Mango and more.

She is also often noticeable for her vibrant hair colours – that’s because she also does hair and wig styling/creation for theatre.

“I realised that everybody gets to pay attention to makeup, but nobody's paying attention to the hair.”

So she learnt how to do it, which worked well with her being a stylist and her ability to do makeup.

Conveniently, her first stint was for a local staging of the musical Hairspray.

“I remember hand-knitting over 40-something blonde wigs,” she said with a laugh.

“It just continued from there. So I don't even have to advertise that I do that, I'm just called. So, now I do (hair for) Brian Mac Farlane’s shows, his concerts…John Thomas’s shows…”

For stage management, she was responsible for TT’s 60th independence anniversary production titled For the Love of Liberty, the parade of athletes for the opening ceremony of the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games, and Tribe’s band launches in 2023 and 2024.

If all her accolades were to be listed in this one story, it would be too many pages.

But with all this experience, she proclaimed, “I would consider myself a cultural ambassador. I never hesitate, no matter where I am, to represent TT. And not just by saying I am from TT but repping us in a big way.”

Her range of work often surprises people, including herself sometimes.

"And that's just how I grew in the industry. So I'd say I'm an anomaly because I think sometimes I am amazed at the amount of things I do at the same time or balance."

She added, "It's been very imperative to me to demonstrate that everything that I attempt to do, or think I attempt to do, that I execute it to the best of my ability."

She said she does not think some people realise how important the creative and performing arts are.

“It's like the engine that gets you to can or could. Even in nursing homes, we realise that the activities they use include the arts. The arts keep the spirit alive, so to speak. And I think if people recognise that that's the foundation of most things, they will understand the importance of the arts.”