Tanya Batson-Savage, Freelance Writer
The restoration of August 1 to the Jamaican calendar was significant for more than giving teenagers a chance to get drunk and litter the beaches of the north coast, or gratify workers with yet another day from the nine-to-five grind. It is a significant marker on the country's historical development, and as such, deserves its own theatrical marking.
That alone, makes the Little Theatre Movement's Augus' Mawnin a worthwhile piece of theatre. The fact that it combines some significant pieces of Caribbean folk and scribal literature gives it additional kudos.
Augus' Mawnin began its ninth staging last weekend at the Little Little Theatre. Written by Barbara Gloudon and directed by Brian Heap, it is the story of a group of run-away slaves who go in search of Augus' Mawnin and the freedom that comes with it.
Nowhere near its potential
The show is nowhere near its potential as its effectiveness in terms of set, lighting, and costumes leaves much to be desired. Its main strength is the music which bubbles from the production's pores and dominates it. The play is also beautifully enhanced by the live music which keeps it energetic and engaging. Additionally, Nicholeen De-Grasse-Johnson and Alice Berry's direction of movement was quite good.
The music is a combination of original works with lyrics by the play's writer, Barbara Gloudon, and music by Grub Cooper as well as traditional folk songs and two popular pieces. Additionally, it also features Vera Bell's 'Ancestor' on the 'Auction Block', Philip Sherlock's 'August Leaders', Lorna Goodison's 'Anne Pengele' and 'Naygah Bickle', Dennis Scott's 'Construction', A. J. Seymour's 'Slaves 'and an excerpt from Lady Nugent's Journal.
Engaging performance
Performances, with the exception of Elizabeth Brown-James, were generally adequate. Brown - James, however, often stood out with an engaging performance. The pieces were sometimes rendered with reasonable success, though some pieces, like Anne Pengele, suffered under the brutality of an insistence on humour, robbing them of their potency and leaving them a crippled, passably funny simulacrum of its former self.
The play makes deliberate attempts to teach about slavery and emancipation and while this leaves it with very stilted dialogue, it also makes the production a good vehicle for teaching the young about slavery. While it does not provide an in-depth look, it is aware of its own limitations, and thus in willing to be the mirror in which we can take a cursory glance.
The production continues through to August 6, 2006 and is quite worth a visit, especially to remind ourselves that there are painful yet celebratory reasons we mark both August 1 and August 6.
See photos from Augus' Mawnin in the Gleaner later this week.
