In Boston, Lilt of the Caribbean Poet-Playwright Derek Walcott, Teaching Far from Home, Never Loses Touch with His Origins

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`THE only thing that holds the world together is theater," Derek Walcott says. Since winning the 1992 Nobel Prize in Literature, this poet and playwright has dedicated himself to supporting and expanding the global cohesiveness of theater and the arts in general.

Born on the small Caribbean island of St. Lucia in the West Indies, Mr. Walcott teaches literature and creative writing at Boston University here.

He plans to use part of his million-dollar Nobel Prize award to establish an international center for the arts on Rat Island, three acres of land off the northwest coast of St. Lucia.

Although the idea is still taking shape, Walcott envisions a retreat …