Off at a Steady Trot

A surge of nostalgia and anticipation propelled a confident, excited stride as people calmy yet expectantly entered the gates of Sisserou. Stardom was back home, and patrons, relatives, curious onlookers, and even neighbors from the other side of the barn flooded in, to say hi, to observe, to bask in the memories of what was and to deight in what was to come. There were the varied murmurs of “looking good, nothing’s changed, not much to shout about, impressive, give it time, and the uncomforting “hmmmm” of skepticism.” By the end of the visit, the well-wishers, naysayers and rival neighbors from the other side of the barn, left certain it was a good visit, but pondering if it was a great one. Promising though–of things to come.

Fanfare of lapeau cabrit and bois-bois over, a faithful stalwart of the Stardom family, the Scrunter, rumoured to have been retired, rose early to welcome the visitors with a bit of utilitarian advice. With that still pristine, commandeering voice, he cautioned his especially revered guests to steer their ships wisely, indefatigably. Having established, through Scrunter, a familiarity zone that this was indeed a Stardom gathering, Big Jeff took the stage to tell us of a true story, that we’re still waiting to hear. Checker scored perhaps, the first check of the night. A persistent, consistent patriarch, he too had a warning to those over-run with passions that a responsibilty of love is honesty. If you love him, Checker said, then there is a checklist of expectations from you to him. A simple message from a simple man–simply well done!

A family has all types: the emotional, the cantankerous, the extroverts, the eccentrics, the intrepid and the loners. Stardom is no exception. Jama B, filled with sentiment, told his slightly unempathetic audience about the silent tears he cries. Not that his listeners did not care, they were apparently just not yet in the mood so early in the evening, and in the season, for the profound feeling that brought Jama B to tears . After a few seconds of uncertainty as to whether we were in the right barn, a family member with revolving homes, the Bull, ranted against celebrating mediocrity. There was no doubting how seriously he took his mission. He almost seemed angry, but we eventually realized that with such a genuinely valid observation on mediocrity, his intensity had to be agony–anguish, rapture, zeal, not really rage.

The eccentrics of the Stardom core are demonstrated by the likes of Walks Up, Elf, Dbs, and Sour Sour. Never straying from their stereo type of comic-entertainment, Walks up, the consumate carnivore, has abandoned hot dogs for finger-licking chicken, a choice which the crowd endorsed enough for one of the few encores of the night. Elf amused us tremendously with his conviction that elfy elfy will trump Tasha P this year. Dbs, his lustre fading, failed to move the crowd beyond mild applause despite his call for a celebration. He was in good company though. The roar that accompanied the reigning roadmarch monarch, Sour Sour’s performance, began with amusement but ended with annoyance. After assuring us that it’s okay to poom in [my] face, he surmised that the cool response was because the band was not playing his music to standard, and twice requested a restart. To the band’s credit, they were impeccable throughout the entire event. The King, after a third restart, was ushered off by the crowd’s request. Ahh, the cyclical fickleness of a crowd. Love you today, leave you tomorrow. A dejected and deflated monarch left the stage after offering an apology, which speaks volumes of his humility.

A comfortable old sock has a predictable feel to it. Dino and Man himself stayed true to their images. Determined not to wear out the soles of his shoes with exertion, Man Himself quietly, but not quickly, suggested we pray a little more, while Dino, determined to remain a paramour, promised this year’s lover that “oh no baby, Dino not dead”. Picky, ever hopeful, wasted no time in begging for one more year and Intruder, still chasing his Pull String swan song, schooled us on the role of a calypsonian.

Potential abounds for new stars in stardom. Twanna has debuted with a bang with “For a Man”. With stage presence, a gifted voice, Tasha P may have spoken prohetically when she said it’s woman time. Checko, an obvious crowd favorite arrived just after midnight, at the merging of the am and pm to a marvellous if not ironic show of support from the Digicel sponsored sea of red. Beno defied the odds by receiving resounding applause even from the Dice faithfuls, initially unwilling to forgive his scathing commentary that last season only birthed one video, for and from the gangster king. Comforter undoubtedly had his glory moments last night when he questioned the clandestine actions of pastors. In fact, pastors seemed to be especially popular as Logas, growing from strength to strength, year to year, asked for pastors’ help in deciphering the strange language of talking in tongues.

Monarchs were few with varying results. Observer declared with limited impact that he was state enemy, Caressah though, always the entertainer, teased successfully with vivid rhythmic images of Rose giving blows with her shoes. There was some disappointment that neither Hunter nor the reigning Monarch Tasha P performed. However, once Unwanted took the stage, all else was forgotten–even the indistinct line between calypso and bouyon. He proved an ideal choice for a showstopper with his catchy, upbeat chant of what they say they say. The crowd went wild.

Yes indeed, the horse has left the stables in a steady trot to the calypso finals. The Stardom family invited us all to their ‘coming home party’ and we do not regret going. After all, when the songs become even more familiar, it can only get better.