Brian Heap (right) accepts one of the three awards won by the production 'After Mrs. Rochester' from presenter Marguerite Cremin. The play won awards for Best Drama, Best Director and Best Production at the 2007 Actor Boy Awards presentation and show, held at the Little Theatre, Tom Redcam Drive, on Tuesday. - photos by Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer

Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer

The last performance at the 2007 staging of the Actor Boy Awards was Nickeisha Barnes singing Lulu's To Sir With Love under a single spotlight, but for Wednesday night's final award it was the 'sir' who gave credit to his students.

Members of the cast of After Mrs. Rochester streamed up to the stage of the Little Theatre, Tom Redcam Drive, St. Andrew, to stand in an arc behind Brian Heap, who collected the award from Yvonne Brewster.

Fantastic cast

The tutor at the Philip Sherlock Centre for the Creative Arts, UWI, Mona, half-turned to the smiling members of the University Players as he said "This production had everything. It had this fantastic cast and it brought in the audience to make it run".

It was two successive trips to the podium for Heap at the ITI Annual Actor Boy Awards for productions staged in 2006, as he had also collected the previous award, for Best Director. However, in the earlier going Michael Holgate stepped off stage and then popped back on stage repeatedly, as Ashe's Curfew took successive awards for Best Original Score, Best Original Song, Best Choreography and Best Musical, Kelly Barrett doing the speaking on the penultimate occasion.

When he jogged down the aisle, smiling, to collect the award for Best Actor in a Lead Role, co-presenter Marguerite Cremin commented 'Mr. Holgate must be exhausted from coming up here this evening'. The production's supporters were not exhausted from screaming, though, as every mention of a nomination, much less a win, was met with screams.

With After Mrs. Rochesteralso taking the awards for Best Costume Design, Best Drama and Best Actress In a Supporting Role in Nadia Khan, it was a tie for most wins.

In addition to the keen tussle between musical and drama, there was also some drama in one non-acceptance. Garfield 'Movie Star' Reid handed the award to Bashment Granny for Best Roots Play back to its co-presenter, Michael Holgate, saying that he could not speak with things in his hands and outlined a number of slights, including the roots play nominees not being invited to the function and the judges not watching another of the nominees, Too Hot To Hangle.

"With disrespect, we decline to accept the award. Thank you," Reid said.

Double winners were De Moon In De Crossroads, for which Franklyn St. Juste took the Best Lighting Design award and Alwyn Bully won Best Set Design, and Uptown Bangarang for which Basil Dawkins took the Best Comedy honours and a grinning Lawrence Woodham, the Best Actor in a Supporting Role.

And there were huge cheers for the final two faces on the screen at the rear of the stage, Charles Hyatt and Louise Bennett-Coverley, as Della Manley and Seretse Small honoured the theatre dead in song.

Michael Holgate made frequent trips to the podium throughout the presentations. He won for Best Actor in a Lead Role, Best Original Song and Best Original Score for the production 'Curfew'.