Marlon De Bique, chief executive officer at Naparima Bowl, award-winning actor and singer, has died.

His family confirmed he died on Tuesday night at the San Fernando General Hospital after a brief illness. He was 45 years old.

De Bique’s journey in the arts started with the musical Blossom Time in 1995 with the Presentation College Mixed Choir under the leadership of Cynthia Lee Mack. There, he fulfilled several roles including that of choreographer and costume designer for many of the choir’s productions.

The tenor has been involved in several productions by The Marionettes Chorale, The UWI Arts Chorale, 3Canal and The Trinity Tenors.

In 2008, Living Arts Inc. of New York, a prestigious institution, acknowledged his exceptional talent as a singer and actor. This recognition led to his casting in the roles of Sportin’ Life and Robbins in the Gershwin opera Porgy and Bess. For two years, De Bique, a true ambassador of the arts, toured with the company, performing in more than 70 shows across Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Russia and Poland.

De Bique, a versatile performer, has won several titles at the Bi-Annual Music Festival and captured two Cacique Awards for his roles as Judas in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Jesus Christ Superstar and Gaston in Beauty and the Beast. His repertoire includes a wide range of characters, from the iconic Jean Valjean in Les Miserables to the rebellious Roger in the musical Rent, the passionate Don Jose in the opera Carmen, and Madea in Raymond Choo Kong’s staging of Diary of a Mad Black Woman.

In 2017, De Bique graduated from the University of the West Indies with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Carnival Studies with a minor in Communication Studies.
At the time of his passing, he was studying for a post-graduate diploma in International Relations at the University of the West Indies.

He worked for eight years as a cultural officer with the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and the Arts before taking up the role of Naparima Bowl CEO in March 2020. De Bique has always described this as a full-circle moment – being at the helm of an institution on which stage he set foot many years prior.
His foresight and creative energy injected new life into Naparima Bowl, raising its profile once again as the cultural soul of the South. As covid19 restrictions on the cultural sector were being lifted, De Bique revitalised the use of the facility’s amphitheatre.

In 2021, he spearheaded the staging of A Bowl Face Parang, and in April last year, the Naparima Bowl Jazz and Culture Festival with a two-in-one concert titled Fusion IV – The Jazz Experience.

Recently, in April, De Bique made his play-directing debut with Wole Soyinka’s The Lion and the Jewel produced by The UWI Department for Creative and Festival Arts at Queen’s Hall.

De Bique’s family sincerely thanks the doctors, nurses, staff, and the High Dependency Unit of the San Fernando General Hospital for their dedicated care, treatment, and sensitivity since he was admitted on Friday.

Funeral arrangements are being finalised and will be announced soon.