Damion Sogren of the University Dramatic Arts Society combined storytelling, poetry and song. - Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer IN CELEBRATION of the founding of the Mona campus of The University of the West Indies (UWI) students put down the mantle of academia and let their creative talents shine on Sunday evening. Their performances were accompanied by those of graduates of the university. Given the sheer talent displayed, it was a night of which the University could be proud.
Of the graduates, the charming Myrna Hague accompanied by Marjorie Whylie clearly stood out. The two performed toward the end of the programme and thrilled the audience with renditions of My Funny Valentine and Our Love is Here to Stay. Although Hague seemed to be having a bit of throat trouble, it did not dampen her performance.
Although it got off to a late start, the evening, ably hosted by Ewan Simpson, flowed smoothly. The evening began on inspirational notes, with first the performance of The University Chorale followed by a solo performance by Fitzgerald Gayle. The chorale, accompanied by their director, performed two pieces.
They started with Climb Every Mountain followed by Psalm 23. The latter was a rearranged rendition of the Buju Banton version of the scripture, done to better suit a chorale.
Accompanied by Marjorie Whylie, Gayle kept the mood on an inspirational level with his moving delivery of You'll Never Walk Alone followed by The Impossible Dream.
Music continued to dominate the first quarter of the show with performances by Carlon Worrel followed by The University Christian College Fellowship (UCCF) Chorale. Worrel, a student in the Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences, wowed the audience with his skills on the violin when he performed Hungarian Dance Number Five. Worrel was accompanied by Whylie on piano and gave the first instrumental performance of the evening.
The UCCF Chorale continued the inspirational tone of the evening with their rendition of the very popular gospel song Days of Elijah. Although there were some discordant voices in their performance, the song's content and the group's effort made it quite acceptable.
The first piece of dance followed the chorale's performance. Lianna Coggins and Njeri Knight performed Unveiling Freedom, a dance choreographed by Kyisha Patterson. Four additional dance pieces would also make their way to the programme.
The most intriguing piece of these was 'Millenial Beings', choreographed by Marlon Simms. The duet, featuring Simms and Mark Phinn, saw the audience breaking out into riotous applause at its end.
A minuscule helping of ballet was also brought to the evening by a black tutu-clad Lorraine Barnaby. Jermaine Rowe also performed a solo dance. However his piece, Decision, was a modern dance. The final dance item for the evening came from the University Dance Society. Also choreographed by Rowe, Freedom Song featured Njeri Knight, Anneke Hamilton, Monique Edwards and Peter Parkinson.
Three dramatic pieces helped to add variety to the evening's fare. Two of these came from the University Dramatic Arts Society (UDAS). The first piece, The Beauty of Being Black was performed by Diedre Richards. The Beauty of Being Black is a two-part poem where the persona questions the need for Black people and God gives all the positive reasons. Interestingly (and perhaps ironically) the persona and God are both dressed in pure white.
The second contribution by UDAS was a mixture of storytelling, poetry and song in an untitled piece performed by Damion Sogren. Carla Moore performed For Coloured Girls.
Instrumental music got its chance to shine during the second half of the programme. The Ewan Simpson Drum Ensemble welcomed the audience back with a rousing set. The band of the University Singers also gave an instrumental performance, beginning with By The Rivers of Babylon.
Song also had its part in the second half of the programme. Along with Hague's performance, the audience was treated to performances by The University Singers and Dale Edwards. Edwards gave an intriguing solo rendition of The Lord is My Light.
The night was brought to a very lively close with the help of the Panoriddim Steel Orchestra.
