The play Clowncierto, by Teatro Tuyo, became an expression of the art of a collective concern that calls for introspection and necessary changes.

Culture is a living, complex, varied, and vital ecosystem for society. Not to understand it in this way is to forget Fidel's words when he said at the 4th Congress of the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC in Spanish) that it is "the first thing to be saved", for being "shield and sword of the nation". To delve into the meaning of these phrases and, then, to make of it a philosophy of action from everyday life, is a necessity and an urgency, especially in such complex times.

We are talking about functions ranging from the formation of identity to the incentive for citizen participation, social inclusion, and the axiological value that makes human beings better people, which translates into a better society. This is so important that we cannot afford to neglect, not even a little, the cultural processes.

We know that in the province the institutional system related to the arts is very deteriorated: the state of theater facilities such as the Blanca Becerra and Raúl Gómez García halls, and the San Pedro Lucumí cabildo, for example, proves it. We appreciate in a certain way that the top managers of Culture in the Balcón de Oriente (Cuban Eastern Balcony) denote sensitivity and a sense of belonging, although more emphasis should be placed on the training of cadres, suitability, strengthening of alliances, and constant dialogue.

However, these and other latent problems here go far beyond the sector. According to data offered by Darlenis Urquiola, provincial director of Culture, the Plan of the Economy available today to cover the inherent to the sphere in the different municipalities is 184 million pesos and that, when broken down between payments to artists, repairs, maintenance, and other priorities, is not enough. We are a deficit province, and this affects all branches. Only 11.6 percent is allocated to programming, which does not meet the demand of artists and audiences, in other words, "mathematics" seems to be unable to solve the convoluted equation.

According to the board of directors, the Tunas Theater will soon reopen as a multi-purpose cultural complex, which includes six well-designed spaces, ranging from a small hall for an activity to a coffee bar and other surprises; let's hope for the quality of this long-awaited oasis. In other words, work is being done, but the solution should not stop there.

Beyond statistics and cut budgets, which are real and limited, some issues go through human subjectivity. Several artists of the territory have spoken out in different spaces (balance sheets of certain organizations, meetings, social networks...) for the need for greater institutional and governmental support. We must listen more to the intellectual vanguard, what better social thermometer than "it"? The demotivation and the exodus of not a few local creators (dancers, actors, musicians...) are red light bulbs that something is going wrong. And what is it, is it just the budget? Is it, not the frequent dialogue, the timely response, and the human warmth that shows that they matter...?

I have heard several times, from multiple catharses, conjugations along the lines of "how I would like to see more of our municipal and provincial leaders in cultural settings"; "my collective with this national result and I haven't even received congratulations or a post on the internet from those who represent us"; "I've been asking for the same thing for years and I haven't gotten a response..."

No one should be upset by what is exposed here, every human work is perfectible and this deserves a collective construction because we are talking about an issue that interests us all and even to prevent greater evils. No wonder that at the recent provincial assembly of the IV Congress of the Saíz Brothers Association (AHS), Lizzete Martínez Luzardo, general director of Cultural Policies of the Ministry of Culture, urged us to evolve in terms of management, to go to different spaces (including the non-state sector) to expand programming, make collective decisions, think about how to better serve artists and achieve more participation in the activities, so that the audience is not only composed of creators but of diverse audiences.

For his part, Rafael González Muñoz, national president of the AHS, reaffirmed the need for greater institutional and governmental support in creative processes, the importance of alliances to obtain better results, better use of the budget following the hierarchies of the sector and the need to review the Cultural Development Program (designed to 2030) with the participation of creators.

This week, in a press conference, Ernesto Parra (leader of Teatro Tuyo) spoke -before directors of related institutions- about new actions that will contribute to the spirit and intellect of the population. But in his words, there was also pain for several reasons that should also be heard by the top leaders of the territory.

A troupe that has given so much prestige to the province and the nation, with numerous awards, that has given life to a National Clown School, to an International Clown Workshop (which we lost), to a children's troupe and to so many things, that has placed us on the cultural map of Cuba, deserves all our attention, or at least receptive ears and hands willing to rest on the shoulder. How many examples will there be under the table (so to speak) for a director like him to question whether it is really in his interest for the group to remain here?

And while the wind comes and goes, who will restore the hours of classes that students of the clown academy (from Camagüey, Granma, and Holguín) lost this year -due to logistical and other problems-, who will stop the termites that eat the wood at the headquarters of the scenic collective, when will the air conditioners there be maintained..., but -most of all-, but -above all-, when will they give maintenance to the air conditioners there? ..., but -above all how to restore the soul that is being broken little by little for lack of response and coherent attention, even if it is a "now it can't be done because..."

The idea is to dialogue and finds alternatives, learning from experiences in neighboring cities that prove to be viable, and for that, we must listen more to the artists in different instances; too many voices cannot be wrong. For the time being, thinking mainly of the public, Parra announced that on June 21, "with or without ideal conditions", the programming of the Centro Cultural Teatro Tuyo will be resumed in the context of the IV Encuentro Académico Clownclave, with the participation of foreign teachers and students.

All this is the tip of an iceberg of concerns that have not been adequately channeled. May these lines be interpreted as what they are: the journalistic echo that calls for useful and transforming change, for the good of all.