1 week ago
5
Proceeds to Benefit Hurricane Relief Efforts in Jamaica
The American Premiere performances of Di Prodigal Pickney, the new stage comedy written, directed by and starring Jamaican theatre legend Oliver Samuels, will serve as fundraisers for hurricane relief efforts in Jamaica.
The production will play in the New York Tri State Area over two weekends, with performances in Bridgeport Connecticut (Central High School) on Friday November 14, Brooklyn New York (Wingate High School) on Saturday November 15 and East Orange New Jersey (Cicely Tyson School for The Performing Arts) on Sunday November 16. It will continue on the following weekend in Jamaica Queens (Springfield Gardens High School) on Friday November 21, Hartford Connecticut (Thomas Weaver High School) on Saturday November 22 and the Bronx (Harry S. Truman High School), on Sunday November 23.
The tour will conclude with the final performance on Sunday December 7 in Beltsville Maryland at High Point High School.
New Jersey based producer of the show’s American tour, Patrick M Reid, made the decision in the aftermath of category five Hurricane Melissa sweeping across Jamaica on Tuesday October 28. The storm resulted in unprecedented damage to Jamaica’s landscape and infrastructure and the displacement and loss of housing for thousands of Jamaicans throughout the western part of the nation.
We had been eagerly anticipating the exciting return of Jamaica’s King of Comedy, Oliver Samuels to the New York Tri State area for months,” Reid says. “But once we saw the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Melissa, we sprung into action immediately and decided that we had to do everything in our power to assist in the urgent recovery effort. Therefore, I’m pleased to share that we will now be donating part proceeds from the production’s American premiere run to the Jamaica Organisation of New Jersey, one of several active US based organizations deeply involved in fundraising for Jamaican hurricane relief at this important juncture. Oliver himself is highly committed and passionate about the cause, and he will be promoting the production extensively across many media platforms in the coming weeks.
The Westwood High School for Girls Alumnae Chapter in New York will also be recipients of proceeds from the production, and according to Reid, their situation is particularly moving.
Westwood were already slated to be beneficiaries of part of our production proceeds even prior to Hurricane Melissa,” he states. “They were in the midst of reconstructing a much needed medical clinic on campus for their students and those funds would have assisted greatly with that effort. However when Melissa hit the school, it did significant damage to the almost completed clinic and ravaged the rest of the compound as well, demolishing the auditorium, many classrooms and some of the school’s boarding facilities. So this has been a real and literal setback for Westwood, and so we are hoping that audiences will turn out in large numbers to support both these worthy causes, while enjoying a very funny and highly entertaining production perfect for the entire family.
Oliver Samuels and Karen Harriott are embattled parents in Di Prodigal Pickney.Di Prodigal Pickney is set in Jamaica and is based on the renowned biblical Parable of The Prodigal Son. In addition to Samuels, the cast features acclaimed actress Karen Harriott and rising theatre star Tesfa Edwards. Samuels and Harriott portray married Jamaican couple Jonas and Miriam, parents to son Ephraim, played by Edwards. Their world is turned hilariously upside down when the spoiled Ephraim, the apple of his father’s eye, dramatically and unexpectedly demands his inheritance -in advance- from his doting dad. The laughs come fast and furious as cantankerous father, beleaguered mother and ‘prodigal pickney’ son try to navigate the ever evolving family dynamics while looking ahead to their uncertain future.
The production comes to the USA for the very first time following its world premiere run in Canada and tours to St Kitts, St Maarten and the United Kingdom, where it has played to packed houses and enthusiastic reviews.
According to Samuels, it is the play’s mixture of high comedy alongside its messages about forgiveness, redemption and child rearing (“Spare the rod and spoil the child at your peril!” he warns) that has made it a hit with international audiences.
In a career spanning over a half century, Samuels has appeared in some sixty theatrical productions, making his stage debut in Jamaica’s national pantomime Music Boy opposite The Honorable Louise Bennett Coverley (Miss Lou). His resume also includes several major film and television projects, including The Mighty Quinn, featuring two time Academy Award winner Denzel Washington and Great Moments in Aviation with Academy Award winner Vanessa Redgrave. Among other honors, he has earned the Jamaican Actor Boy Award as Best Actor for Derek Walcott’s classic postcolonial comedy Pantomime, a Silver Musgrave Medal, an Honorary Doctor of Letters from The University Of The West Indies, as well as The Order of Distinction, Officer Class (OD) and The Order of Distinction, Commander Class (CD) from the government of Jamaica.
The American premiere tour of Di Prodigal Pickney is presented by Sky’s The Limit Foundation and Jammins Events in collaboration with STL Promotions.
Tickets and further information on the production is available online at STLVentures.org or by calling 973-801-1923 or the Westwood Alumnae ticket line at 929-242-9156.
English (US) ·