Sly Mongoose from 'Combolo'.
Tanya Batson-Savage, Staff Reporter
THE INTERNATIONAL Theatre Institute (ITI) Actor Boy Awards nominations have been announced and they declare that 2003 was a good year in Jamaican theatre. With offerings delving into family, betrayal, history and more, last year's productions were at least hint at a renaissance in Jamaican theatre.
This year the awards ceremony, scheduled for March 23, will be dubbed 'The Magical Moments, A Tribute to Technical Theatre' and will honour Larry Watson.
The 2003/4 National Pantomime Combolo scooped up nine Actor Boy Awards nominations, including 'Best Production', 'Best Director' (Robert Clarke), 'Best Musical' and two nominations for 'Best Original Song' for Why Have I Come Here and Higher Ground.
Combolo is also nominated for 'Best Lighting Design' (Michael McDonald), 'Best Set Designer' (Michael Lorde), 'Best Costume Design' (Anya Gloudon) and 'Best Choreography' (Kevin Moore).
Combolo is easily one of the most ambitious productions on the stage currently and it is visually very stimulating. Based on the idea that one of Christopher Columbus' descendants (who bears the same name) has come to apologise to the decimated original inhabitants, the play has to create worlds for the Tainos, Jamaicans and the Spaniards. The costuming and music are pivotal to making the idea believable.
Basil Dawkins should also be feeling rather accomplished as a writer and producer, as two of his productions have been nominated in the 'Best Production' category. A Gift For Mom, which is currently being touted as Dawkins' best play to date, received eight nominations, while Who God Bless received four.
Dawkins displayed humility in response to the inferred accolades, noting that if his latest play is being seen as his best then he believes it shows his growth in the art form.
A Gift For Mom, which takes the audience through a troubled relationship between a mother and her teenage son, was also nominated for Best New Jamaican Play, 'Best Drama', 'Best Set Design' (Michael Lorde) and 'Best Director' (Buddy Pouyatt).
Three of the four-member cast of A Gift For Mom received acting nominations.
Christine Bell is nominated for 'Best Actress in a
Lead Role', while Ruth HoShing got the nod for 'Best Actress in a Supporting Role' and Alwyn Scott for 'Best Actor in a Supporting Role'.
Interestingly, Scott was nominated twice for his performances, as his stint as Trevor Rhone in the one man play Bella's Gate Boy earned him a nomination for 'Best Actor in a Lead Role'.
Who God Bless received three acting nominations: Sabrina McDonald (Best Actress in a Lead Role), Christopher McFarlane (Best Actor in a Supporting Role) and Teisha Duncan (Best Actress in a Supporting Role).
Dawkins noted that he is particularly happy about the nominations of his young cast members. McDonald and Duncan are both just cutting their teeth in commercial theatre and doing a rather impressive job at it.
Another major contender for the Actor Boy Awards is the Jamaica Musical Theatre Company's Mama I Want to Sing, which received eight nominations. Along with the 'Best Production' nomination, Mama is nominated for Best Director (Alwyn Bully), 'Best Musical', 'Best Costume Design' (Carolyn Chin Yee), 'Best Set Design' (Ron Steger), 'Best Choreography' (Paula Shaw), 'Best Lighting Design' (Franklyn St. Juste) and 'Best Actor in a Supporting Role' (Karl Williams).
Williams, who is the second actor to get nods portraying two characters, receives a second nomination in the same category for Bedward. Winston Bell was also nominated for his role in Bedward in the 'Best Actor in a Lead Role' category.
Though not nominated in the 'Best Production' category, Jambiz International's Christopher Cum-Buk-Us received an impressive seven nominations. Trevor Nairne brought in 'Best Lighting Design' and 'Best Costume Design' nominations, while Patrick Brown earned another two for 'Best Set Designer' and (along with Jon Williams) 'Best Original Song' for The Rock.
Christopher Cum-Buk-Us also received nominations for 'Best Comedy', 'Best Actor in a Lead Role' (Oliver Samuels) and 'Best Actor in a Supporting Role' (Glen Campbell).
Sure Thing Production's story of love and betrayal, Redemption, also earned a 'Best Production' nod. The play was also nominated for 'Best Direction' (Douglas Prout), 'Best New Jamaican Play', 'Best Drama', 'Best Actor in a Lead Role' (Paul Campbell) and 'Best Actress in a Lead Role' (Karen Harriott).
Pecong, another 'Best Production' nominee, saw most of its laurels resting on the actors, receiving nods for Best Actress in a Lead Role (Bertina MacCaulay) and two 'Best Actress in a Supporting Role' nominations (Carole Lawes and Joan Belfon), along with a 'Best Drama' nomination.
The story of magic and mystery, Scheherazade's Tale, was the sole nominee in the Best Children's Theatre category. It was also nominated for 'Best Musical', 'Best Costume Design' (Carolyn Chin Yee) and 'Best Choreography' (Tony Wilson).
Single Entry, the story of two Jamaican women's desperate attempts to get into the United States and what they go through when they get there, is a sole 'Best Production' nominee, with only two other nominations. The production was also nominated for 'Best New Jamaican Play' and 'Best Comedy'.
Four productions received one-off nominations, with Makeda Solomon of What The Hell nominated for 'Best Actress in a Lead Role' and 'Fae Ellington' being nominated in the same category for her performance in Fallen Angel.
Two nominees came in the 'Best Revue' category, these being Voices and Oliver Abroad.
