By Tanya Batson-Savage, Freelance WriterTHEY HAD come to see which of them would be praised, but before the trophies were given out, they were given something else instead advice. Chief adjudicator of Tallawah 2004, Michael Daley, pointed out that in an attempt to improve the standard of the performances, the judges decided to tell the participants about their weaknesses.
Along with Daley, Karl Williams and Amber Chevannes made up the three judges for the five days of competition. Tallawah is a tertiary level drama competition, conducted by the Phillip Sherlock Centre for the Creative Arts. The competition began on November 7, with the Best of Tallawah being staged last Sunday.
IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED
Chevannes addressed the writers in the competition. She noted that too many of the original plays ended "too neatly" or "too abruptly". While admitting to the difficulty of writing a story's end, Chevannes argued that improvements needed to be made. "One way of overcoming that is that we need to write more, not just wait for an occasion," she said.
Though she urged for stronger writing, Chevannes also lamented the number of original scripts entered into the competition urging for more pieces to be presented in future. Daley agreed with her and also encouraged writers to be more prolific with their pen. "Not every thing you put out there is going to be good, but keep trying," he said.
Three high commendations and an award for Best New Play were distributed. Teniele Warren of the University Dramatic Arts Society (UDAS) earned the Best New Play award for Serial Killers Anatomy. She also earned a high commendation for the script of the monologue First Degree. Performed by Carla Moore, First Degree also earned the award for Best Monologue, Female. The production Sextra Unlimited was also given a high commendation for script, movement and original music. Another UDAS production was commended for the script, as Peter Parkinson's Monologue Sorry Mama We'll Soon Come earned a high commendation for script, lighting and movement and the award for Best Monologue, Male.
Parkinson and Moore would also coup two of the acting awards. Moore received the award for Best Actress for First Degree while Parkinson earned the Best Actor award. Sabrena Williams earned the Best Supporting Actress award for her role in Sextra Unlimited while Warwick Latibeaudierre earned the award for Best Supporting Actor.
It fell to Williams to speak of acting. He began by stating that far too many of the performers began their pieces by looking down. Williams noted also that strong actors had their performances marred by weak diction and far too often had expressive faces but monotonous voices. Williams also urged the actors to be mindful of their body language, their chemistry with the other actors and their projection. "Some of you were very pretty to look at but I couldn't hear a word," he said.
Daley targeted most of his comments at the directors. He urged the directors to select pieces according to their cast abilities. While complementing the general good use of lighting, he suggested that music should be relevant to the piece. "Just because there is an award for music doesn't mean you have to use music," he said. Daley went on to encourage the participants to stick to quality productions. "Don't substitute quantity for quality," he said addressing those with multiple presentations. Damion Radcliff earned the Best Director award for Sextra Unlimited. Radcliff also earned the Noel Vaz Trophy for acting while Sextra Unlimited received the Shell Trophy for Best Production.
"To the winners tonight," said Daley, "look at this as a step in the right direction, not as though you have arrived."
ADDITIONAL WINNERS:
Off the Page Award Modern Languages Department Haiti Leve Cauipe
Best Set Centrestage Theatre Living on the Ledge
Best Make-up UDAS Reggae Head
Best Lighting Peter Parkinson 'Mama We'll Soon Come'
Best Sound Centrestage Theatre Living on the Ledge
Best Use of Music Modern Languages Department - Haiti Leve Cauipe
Best Props Georgette Morris That Beating Thing
Best Costumes Northern Caribbean University Real Jamaican
Best Storyteller (Female) - Shanoy Harris Sunday Cricket
Best Storyteller (Male) Dillison Stoddard Caribbean Life
Best Poetry (Female) Thealdra Baker 'Jacket and Tie' Best Poetry (Male) Orville Hall New Breed.
