Norvan is the best

He stands tall among the people in his field. He is the one person thousands go to for cultural direction. And although he has so many responsibilities, Norvan Fullerton, 54, is able to maintain his friendliness and charm wherever he goes. The route that took him from an ordinary performer to the Director of Best Village was filled with many obstacles, but Fullerton proved that he had the strength and determination to conquer the odds and to rise to this height of success he’s now enjoying. It was no surprise therefore when the government  chose Norvan Fullerton for the Chaconia Silver medal at this year’s Independence celebrations. He received this award for 28 years service to the Prime Minister’s Best Village Trophy competition and community development. “I dedicate this award to all the people who are working tirelessly for the Best Village throughout Trinidad and Tobago and in particular the Malick Folk Performers,” he said.

Fullerton is always busy and getting an interview with him is not easy. In fact, half of this interview had to be conducted over the phone. Answering the question about wanting to see his reactions while speaking to him, he responded, “use your imagination.” He was busy last taking care of his ailing mother. Fulfilling his role as a dedicated son and a productive worker, he juggles his time like crazy. He requested that this interview be taken in his car while he drove to a meeting with the National Carnival Committee. And this is one of the strangest interviews I have ever done in ten years of journalism. Despite the rush to get his notes in order, he spoke about his climb to success. “I was born in Martin Trace, San Juan and I attended the Gandhi Vedic Memorial as a child. That’s why I know a lot about East Indian culture, so don’t try fooling me about anything. I know about  the culture inside out,” he smiled handsomely while speaking. After graduating from Emanuel High School in San Juan, he entered the police service. In 1968 he was enjoying his work as an officer, when he came in contact with a gentleman who spoke words of wisdom to him.  “He said when someone is a public servant, they spend all their time getting their job right and they have very little time for anything else. He told me that in order to explore my full potential I must be able to spend all my time as I choose.”

This conversation had great impact on young Norvan. He quit the police service and started working as an Insurance agent with Algico. His love for dance and drama led him to the Barataria Community Council (BCC) where he was an ordinary performer like other youths of the San Juan/Barataria area. Back then the Barataria group scored high in the PM’s Best Village competition. And Norvan was looking at success coming from the cultural arena. In 1974 he had the opportunity to work with a bunch of youths from the BCC, when the then director, Ronald Amoroso left the country for an overseas tour. The days in Barataria were difficult. As a young man he spent endless hours coming up with the perfect plan to have groups unite and produce good material for the stage. He had some measures of success but he felt that he should start his own group. It was then that the Malick Folk Performers came into being. It is a fact that this group is the most popular in the history of Best Village having taken the winning trophy for seven years. This achievement really describes the magnitude of the man who is Norvan Fullerton. He is by far one of the most admirable director and producers the country has ever seen.

Then what is the secret to his success? How is it that he can mobilise people of his area and produce such a marvellous production year after year? “You conceive the idea, you believe that you could get it done and then you go on to achieve it. It is that simple, and that complicated,” he spoke like a philosopher. He told his members that there is no stage that is too big for them. He wanted to establish a simple village group that could get on any stage to display the culture of the country. This, he accomplished with long hours of planning, raising funds and rehearsing with members. Being a humble human being, everyone related to him with ease. He was never too high or too big for them and as a result of this he was able to convince his members to work hard to get the result they craved. “Best Village is uniquely designed to unite the people of a village as one big family. They breathe the same air. They enjoy the same breeze that blows across the village and therefore they develop a kind of rhythm about them that makes them different from the other villages, although they live in the same country,” he spoke about the depths one must explore when uniting people of the same community.

Norvan has lived in San Juan all his life. He married a girl name Cynthia in 1971 and together they have three children. Michelle, 28, Norva, 26, and Norvan Junior, 24. His wife died in 1998 following kidney failure. Since then he has plunged himself more into social activities and he gets a lot of fulfilment from this. He is so dedicated to Best Village that he dreads travelling on a plane that takes 18 hours from one destination to another. “I feel I could do so much with that time. It is really frustrating sitting in a plane for so long,” he said. He said that Best Village has been able to churn out the best performers in the country as well as the best artistes. Today Best Village also promotes environmental sanitation, sports, art and cooking. 
The common folk of the village have the opportunity to showcase their talent in any of these fields. “The government is offering a place to do rehearsals, which is the community centre and they also offer incentives for purchasing costumes. The groups must come together and work with each other.” Fullerton sped off into the distance. His destination? Queen’s Hall. After a hard day’s work he must attend the shows of the village in the night. The soldier continues the battle, fighting a worthy cause and getting fulfilment and satisfaction from his work. “If I had the opportunity to live life again, I would not change a thing,” he said.