Jamaican play well received at ‘Peace Mo’

by Sheron Garraway

Bravo for the cast of the last weekend’s presentation of Sam Borick’s play, “Remember Me?” The play which was directed by Pablo Hoilett had the audience laughing out of their seats from beginning to end.

The plot, which was based in the beautifully designed pistacho coloured living room walls of the “Hansons” a middle class couple from Jamaica, urges couples who think that they have a “solid, functional union” to look deeper to see if the other party is sad and lonely. {{more}}

Housewife “Mary”, portrayed by an impressive Fae Elington, is bored to her wits by the lack of spice in her marriage of some 20 years, to her confident and often times “grass root man” attorney husband “Brian” played by Veron Derby.

Mary wallows around all day at home, unlike her outgoing, tennis-playing husband. And she is forced by her subconscious to create some excitement in the form of one time sweetheart, “Peter Lawrence” played by the debonair Douglas Prout.

One of the high points of the play is when Brain comes home from an early game of tennis and walks in on both Mary and Peter romantically frolicking on the sofa. Mary quickly apologizes to her husband for her wanton behaviour, but he is convinced that she is going mad, since he himself is unable to see his wife’s imaginary friend.

But after she brags of the fun she is having with her figmented lover, Brian becomes jealous and tries to help his wife get back in touch with reality by hiring a young “sassy” actress, “Tori Clarke” played by Monique Ceasar and Kaysilyn Lawson.

Mary is however unmoved by the actions of her husband, who flaunts the pretty young thing and counteracts her husband’s move with a threat that she can file a divorce since her lover is imaginary but his is however real.

But the surprise climax of the play comes when Peter does in fact visit the couple and is seeking property to buy in the neighbourhood., But Brain, who feels threatened, tries to convince him not to move in.

When Mary realizes that Peter is still the “egotistical lover boy” he once was, she is disappointed in what she sees and falls back in love again with her husband who is now eager to re-kindle the flame.

Oh…and the actress Tori, seeing a good chance getting money when she sees it, dumps Brian and scoops up Peter as her new lover.

The only down fall of the play was that, sometimes, one can get lost in the “quick tounged” Jamaican dialect.

The Rotary Club South too must be commended for their intiative in bringing exceptional theatre to this country while raising funds for the soon to be built state of the art Children’s Hospital.