By Tanya Batson-Savage, Staff Reporter'MELLO-GO-ROUN' 2003', which was put on by the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) on Wednesday, was a successful evening of dance, song and drama at the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre, Hope Road, St. Andrew, on Saturday. The annual event, hosted this year by Joan Andrea Hutchinson, features the most entertaining entries from the JCDC performing arts competition.
Of course, with all the talent and hard work which goes into the competitions, it would take tremendous effort to ruin the night. As such, although the evening suffered from some audio trouble, Mello-Go-Roun' still managed to be a very entertaining event.
Although the evening featured speech, drama and music presentations, the 'talk' and 'play' seemed to have the greatest impact on the audience.
Jade Harris' rendition of Louise Bennett's Cuss Cuss was one of the high points of the night. Before the student of Gemglow Kindergarten uttered a word, the sight of her decked out in tights and a T-shirt and wreathed in beaded necklaces brought applause. When she began to curse at the 'heng pan nail', the audience's delight soared. As Hutchinson pointed out, though Jade was hardly bigger than a 'maskita' her performance suggested she was a 'madda peppa in di making'.
TOP HONOURS
Harris had earned the Louise Bennett Trophy for Excellence, given to the 'Best Overall Jamaican Dialect'. This year, however, the trophy was given to two performers. Jermaine Nairne of Glenmuir High also earned top honours. He too delighted the audience on Saturday night, with his performance of You Tink I Mad Miss?
The sole dramatic entry, Exed Community College's skit, Dance Hall Romance, almost had the audience in stitches. The skit, written by Orville Hall, is a satiric look at what can pass for love in Jamaica. As one man noted in response to the skit: We've come a far way from roses are red....
The students of Kingston College brought more than just laughter with their dub poems. Everaldo Creary performed Unfolding it Palitically. Armed with a pickaxe, he dubbed the connections between politics, economics and violence. Despite microphone trouble, the audience loved his performance.
The Nomaddz, the name of Kingston College's drama group, continued the process of unfolding social issues with Unfolding Truths, another dub poem. This time, the focus was on how decisions create the life we lead. Although the poem contained some funny moments, especially with the comic stylings of the Nomaddz, its serious content was noted by the audience, which often yelled agreement.
Kaylia Ellis of Hope Valley Experimental demonstrated the professionalism most of the participants in the JCDC competitions usually learn. She was one of the early victims of the microphone troubles which would plague the night.
As such, most of the audience could not hear her and they were not gentle in stating this. Nonetheless, she finished her beautiful delivery of What Children Want Their Parents To Know, not faltering even when a new microphone was placed in her hand. However, for the benefit of those who were unable to hear the first performance, she was brought back for a repeat.
OUTSTANDING
Carline Waugh was one of the most outstanding performers from the music category. Despite the muddy sound of the background music, the clarity and power of her voice easily won over the audience as she belted How Great Thou Art. Waugh had earned the trophy for the most outstanding female soloist. Her male counterpart, Andrew Clarke, also contributed his vocals to the evening, performing So I'll Wait For You. Mel Nathan Preparatory also delighted the audience with their combination of percussive instruments, including tambourines, shakers, graters and their hands and feet, with the sound of the congo drums.
Unfortunately the two choirs were not as effective, especially because they could not be heard properly. Vere Technical High performed Tief Tek Ova Town while Glenmuir Festival Choir performed Win De Sweepstakes, both of which are folk songs.
The dance items presented a festivity of popular, modern and creative folk forms. The girls of St. George's Primary School were the first to take the stage. Dressed in short plaid dresses, they delighted the audience with 'Rhythm Mumma', especially when they shook their padded bottoms at the onlookers.
Two dances came from Lannaman's Preparatory, which had earned the trophy for most outstanding junior group. Orbicular was their pop and modern contribution; Platoon Fest, a creative folk piece, helped to bring the night to a close. The men of St. Jago High contributed to the popular dance category with Controlled Chaos Reloaded. Another all-male group, The Portmore Dancers, delivered the second popular dance piece, The Challenge. This dance, which combined dance and acrobatics, quite thrilled the audience.
Two ring game performances were also featured, though no other categories from the traditional folk forms were featured. The students of Davis Primary of St. Catherine brought the first. The all-girl group sang and performed the varying ring games, while members of the audience, and not only the children, sang along.
The second ring game came from Zion Hill Primary of Manchester. This time it was an all boy group performing the actions, while girls provided background vocals.
Mello-Go-Roun' is essentially the tip of all the talent to be found in the JCDC competitions. Nonetheless, it was an entertaining fraction and the crowd seemed to have had a very 'mello' time on Saturday night.
