Michael Reckord, Gleaner Writer

Attempts continue to keep Kingston's Ward Theatre alive. Now nearly a centenarian, it has been dying for decades.

Arguably, it's already dead. The Little Theatre Movement's (LTM) annual National Pantomime, its main source of revenue for years, deserted it long ago. And it's not considered as a possible venue by any production company wanting a run, so it has only accommodated one-performance shows in recent years.

And with good reason, Audiences were, and are, reluctant to attend shows at the theatre. Also with good reason. It's risky. Plus, the place is rotting away. Here's a statement by the directors of the Ward Theatre Foundation: "Today the Ward Theatre is closed as it needs extensive repairs and restoration ... now major work is critical."

Apparently, the foundation believes it's possible to have a viable theatre in the middle of a crime-infested community. In that they are at odds with many members of the theatre fraternity who, having considered the matter extensively, concluded years ago that the city needed cleaning up before, or at least concurrently with, the theatre. Otherwise, tossing more money into its upkeep would be like pouring water into a basket.

Repairs

But the Ward Theatre Foundation continues to raise and spend millions. One member told The Sunday Gleaner recently that the roof is now being repaired.

This was at the latest fund-raising effort, a wonderful concert at the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ). Notably the bank is even further downtown than the theatre. The audience turn-out was fair, occupying nearly half of the seats in the large auditorium.

Greetings were brought from the Ministry of Information, Culture, Youth and Sports by the minister herself, the patron of the function. Olivia 'Babsy' Grange said that the ministry is "committed to aiding the restoration of the Ward Theatre ... We cannot afford to lose the Ward, as it has played too great a role in our history".

Not surprisingly, in view of the history mentioned above, the wisdom of the commitment is being questioned.

Another much-discussed event was the final duet. The singers were the young Jamaican tenor Rory Baugh and Victoria Livengood (mezzo-soprano), the older, far more experienced mega-star from America, who was the star attraction.

In a matchup worthy of a 'Voice Olympics', the two 'competed' to out-sing each other on A Place Where We'll Be Safe. One member of the audience, a singer, opined that Baugh "won", but undoubtedly he at least tied.

The audience gave the two a standing ovation. Such was the quality of the concert that it was the third that evening. Livengood's sincere, powerfully delivered O Holy Night had elicited the previous one. The effort she put into holding the long notes caused her to wipe her brow as the song ended.

Both this song and the duet with Baugh were 'brawta' items from the Grammy-nominated Metropolitan Opera star, after she had declared it "an honour and a pleasure" to have been invited to sing. The first standing ovation had come after she sang her fourth set of songs, The Way You Look Tonight, All The Things You Are and Can't Help Lovin' That Man of Mine.

Her performance proved she deserved the glowing biography printed in the concert programme. It stated that Livengood has been hailed as "one of the leading singer-actresses of her generation", reminiscent of the great Maria Callas. Since her "critically acclaimed Met debut in 1991", she has had over 100 Met performances, performed as Carmen in more than 200 performances worldwide, and played opposite Palcido Domingo at the Met.

Her blurb took up an entire page of the programme and was nearly four times longer than Baugh's.

Other performers

The other performers on the programme were all well-known Jamaican musicians and were all excellent. They were Roger Williams (piano), who played mostly with Touch of Elegance, a trio comprising Paulette Bellamy (violin and piano), Carol Ball (keyboard and violin) and Alex Martin Blanken (keyboard). The group accompanied the singers and performed on their own.

The 20-item programme included classical music, show tunes, Christmas songs and folk music. Vivian Crawford, executive chairman and treasurer of the Ward Theatre Foundation, was the jovial MC.