Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
FROM THE high of a riotous Prince Edwards, the month-end staging of Backyaad Crack-Up took a roller-coaster plummet with closing performer Beetle Bailey last Wednesday night.
However, the humorous deejay-turned-comedian for the night refused to be thrown by the handclaps that urged him off, sticking to his rusty comedic guns before calling for a rhythm to deejay 'Rasta a bigga gallis fi certain bway', to an improved response.
The Prince and Bailey were the post-intermission comedy performers on a night where Dance Xpressions showed skanking skill, Ibo Cooper opened the night and Sammy, visiting from Miami, fended off a comment on his skin colour with reference to his ponderous proboscis and dropped a gem about the famous Super Bowl breast-baring incident between Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake.
"It was nice to see a white boy molesting a Jackson for once," Sammy said, to laughter.
DJ Wellington, in security guard garb, deejayed wittily about his job, but the overdone drunk antics of his partner Rumhead did not move the audience much.
LASTING IMPRESSION
In the skit that followed Cooper, the 'gallis' character Mr. Cox got a whopping from a lady over his roving ways, a glorious glint of gluteus maximus under her short skirt leaving a lasting impression.
DJ Wellington, who said he has been employed as a security guard for 11 years, deejayed at length to good effect about his approach to his job, saying "My body allergic to shot." He addressed the persistent beggars, saying "From yu gi dem one time/is like a contrac' yu sign/an dem don' waan resign."
Prince Edwards opened with an extensive one-man skit in which he created the scene of a full bus, doing the positions of driver, conductor, a large man bent over a girl, who came in and placed a leg over the gearstick and, of course, himself, seated behind the bent-over man.
ELEMENTS OF DRAMA
There was keen attention to Edwards' almost conversational delivery, the laughter rising as he set the scene, climaxing in howls as Edwards said, "Sunday jus' gone an' is Monday morning."
His imagination ran riot, reeling off a list of ingredients from rice and peas (cook dung inna coconut milk, no less), potato salad, mayonnaise, "not to mention the soursop juice," the laughter rising with each ingredient.
Off to that start, Prince Edwards went on a roll with comments about silent flatulence, his stint as a doctor, organs being played in large cathedrals and another long, humorous story that had elements of drama.
Edwards created the image of a man who had borrowed another's boat, then complained to the owner that when the Titanic went down there was a 12-piece band playing God Save the Queen, who was not even there; yet "fi yu boat not even have a four-piece ban' fi play 'God save Natty'."
Hosts for the night were Elva and Rodney Campbell.
