Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer

Beres Hammond (left) and Marica Griffiths. - File

When Beres Hammond's A Moment In Time unfolds at the National Indoor Sports Centre on Sunday, December 30, all the stops will be pulled out in order to make it as special a moment in production as in performance.

Martin Lewis, producer of the event, told those gathered for the official launch at Harmony House, Burlington Avenue, on Thursday evening, that during initial meetings it was decided that "whatever we decided to do it had to be a first".

a moment in time

"It was at that time that he (Hammond) said Martin, this is not going to be a day, it will be a moment in time," Lewis said.

To that end, the 'Moment', at which the 30-member Sugar Hill Classical Orchestra will combine with Hammond's regular band, will be staged with the audience all around the performers. There will be space for 4,000 persons on the various levels of the raised-arena type seating, with 1,500 numbered seats on the floor.

As it will be produced for DVD release, the man in charge of the camera work, Brian St. Juste, said "we will be shooting in high definition, which is sort of like what you have on your plasma television".

St. Juste also said that the nine to 10 cameras which will be used is unprecedented in Jamaica.

"Hopefully we can put Beres bigger than before, bigger stage, bigger world, that DVD market," St. Juste said.

There are high expectations for the DVD of A Moment in Time, as Lewis said, "We expect the product to stand beside a Celine Dion, a Justin Timberlake."

However, when Lewis started to outline the prices for the 'Moment', there was laughter as Beres Hammond got up to say something to him, this after the announcement of a $4,000 price for those in the arena-style seating. Before he resumed, Lewis said that it was a challenge for Hammond to hear the prices, as it was a challenge to his cross-section of supporters.

The seats on the floor of the sports centre, which will be numbered and assigned, will cost $6,000. There is a $500 reduction on both prices for ticket purchases before December 15.

There was laughter as Hammond began his very short address, joking "me never know sey a far up the money gone", adding that for the production level it should be about $7,000.

"If it was up to me you would come in free. But somebody has to pay the bill," Hammond said.

Beres Hammond.- File

And earlier Martin Lewis had said that in the initial stages of planning the event, after a month of trying to get sponsorship, without success there was a determination that the 'Moment' would happen, no matter what. To that end, Lewis said "Mr. Hammond, through Harmony House, is totally underwriting the production of A Moment in Time."

Eventually, sponsors got on board, among them Scotiabank, Pepsi-Cola Jamaica Ltd., The Gleaner Company, Air Jamaica and The RJR Communication Group.