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Children's Pantomime in jeopardy

Published:Wednesday | March 27, 2013 | 12:00 AM
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Children from four to 14 years old are part of the 71-strong cast of last year's Children's Pantomime, 'The GEM'. - Colin Hamilton/Freelance Photographer
Eby Nelson plays Patoo in last year's Children's Pantomime. - Colin Hamilton/Freelance Photographer
The evil henchman schemes for money and power, as his adoring attendees keep watch
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Davina Henry, Staff Reporter

There is uncertainty surrounding the staging of this year's GEM Children's Pantomime as sponsors have not been coming on board to fund the production.

With Child Month approaching, Sandrea Dennis, marketing assistant at Precision Strategic Partners Limited, told The Gleaner that so far they have raised a little more than US$400.

With the pantomime costing up to US$25,000, there is certainly a far way to go.

"The US$400 is the most that we have gotten, and that was from an international funding website called www.indiegogo.com, where persons from all over the world can donate. We still have a really long way to go in terms of getting funding for this year's staging," Dennis told The Gleaner.

Empowering children

GEM, which stands for Greatness Exists in Me, was officially launched in 2012 with the aim of empowering children between the ages of 4 and 13.

Dennis added that this is not a new problem, as the money they received from sponsors last year did not cover the cost of the production.

"We had very little cash last year and this year we are still in a bind. It's not like we have sponsors that have agreed to come on board every year, so basically we have to start from scratch with each staging," she said.

Dennis said that although efforts have been made to secure sponsorship, to date, only two companies, Jamaica Broilers and Television Jamaica, have so far made commitments.

"We are targeting government agencies as well, but what we need is money. That is what we truly need and that is what we don't have and we are not getting."

This year's staging of the pantomime is titled GEM: iShine and is produced by Kerine Miller.

"It would be really unfortunate, because the kids are already in rehearsals and they are committed and disciplined.

"These kids are our future, and as much as Jamaicans like to say we love our kids, we are not getting the support. It would really be a shame for so many kids to miss the message we are teaching," Miller told The Gleaner.