Tanya Batson-Savage, Freelance Writer
Students of Excelsior Community College in 'Runnins: Sour & Sop' on the first day of Tallawah 2005 at the Phillip Sherlock Centre, UWI, Mona, on Sunday, November 6. - CARLINGTON WILMOT/FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER
THE THING about Tallawah, as with all festivals and competitions, is that one can usually expect to find the good, the bad and the boring. Tuesday night, the second night of competition, Tallawah 2005 provided such tri-polar fare.
So it is that on Tuesday night, Mikey Smith was given cause to not merely roll over in his grave, but also issue a soul-rending 'laaaaaaaaaaawd!" at the wanton destruction that was wreaked upon his poetry. While it must be admitted that dramatists need to be able to take risks, God's Artistic People Production's Rootific - A Tribute to Michael Smith was a testament to the values of playing it safe. The production boldly strode toward the ridiculous, smiled at it and kept on going.
At the other end of the spectrum were two plays, the University Dramatic Arts Society's (UDAS) December and the Excelsior Community College's (EXED) Trapped. The latter was an experimental piece which explored the madness that governs cruelty in society. With players who were simultaneously inhabitants of a mental institution and various characters, the production explored abusive parents and helpers, predatory men and predatory lesbians.
It approached the issues through humour, though their serious content was not completely sidelined. However, the script and the direction could have been sharper. Additionally, through Trapped EXED is able to showcase its new crop of students and the production, which allowed each to take on multiple roles, proved a challenging task.
EXCELLENT SCRIPT
December's main strength was Patrick Brown's excellent script, which was more than ably brought to life by director Lesley-Ann Wanliss and the two players, Lesley-Ann Bernard and Albert Williams. December presents a touching portrait of a couple in their December years. For each, life has proved to be less than they expected, yet they are able to find some comfort in each other as they brace for death's touch.
Entries from UDAS dominated the night. Along with December, the group presented three monologues and a poem. Their first piece for the night, the monologue Hate, performed by Clifford Warmington, suffered badly from bad pacing and lack of vocal expression, allowing it to languish in boredom. Its director clearly understood that the stage should be well-used but not how to execute that it, so that there were three distinct areas created on the stage but their roles were not clearly defined.
The excerpt from A Streetcar Named Desire was more effective, but it failed to fulfil its potential, while the dub poem Peace Cry was competent. The group's third monologue, The Ducé, which brought the night to a close, was at best baffling.
Theatre Xpressionz's play The Return had opened the night. Reminiscent of Remember Me, it deals with love lost. However, the players seemed to be struggling with the lines and the romantic moments were far too melodramatic. Additionally, as the production far exceeded the allotted time for plays (it ran for approximately an hour instead of the given 30 minutes), it is eligible for automatic disqualification from the competition.
COMPETENTLY DELIVERED
Red Light Productions had a single entry, the monologue Souls Collective, which was competently delivered, as was Shermaine Desnoes' Cleveland Raining. Through the latter, Desnoes showed a good grasp of
subtleties and her costuming was perfectly drab.
Probemaster Entertainment's single entry for the night highlighted Tallawah's diversity. Under the heading monologue, they delivered Don't Cry For Me Argentina which was, of course, sung. Despite its difference from the other entries, the entry would probably have fared better if it had been original, rather than simply rip the song from Evita.
