![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Nite-Box-feature.png\")
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Theatre is back with a bang and Alwin Bully would be all smiles to know that just\u00a0five months after his journey to the great beyond that a group of young people\u00a0could have thrilled an audience with the Nite-Box forty-six years after its debut at\u00a0the St. Gerards Hall by the People’s Action Theatre.<\/p>\n
Curtis Clarendon as director and Gloria Septra Augustus of LA Cour Des Arte de la\u00a0Dominique did an excellent job in assembling the most appropriate actors to play\u00a0the various roles in the play. The cast of seven did justice to their respective roles\u00a0to the extent that the audience could be heard identifying themselves with the\u00a0various characters. Led, played by Chad Zamore, captivated the audience\u00a0throughout the play and Stacia, played by Marja \u201cLady Star\u201d Stedman, was\u00a0sensational.<\/p>\n
All the other characters Paps (Gael \u201cKing Trilla G\u201d Jno. Baptiste), Nimrod (Yanson\u00a0Hilaire\/Jonathan Theophile), Mrs. Gloudon (Leyona John), June (Adela David) and\u00a0Claude (Kerwin Jorvan Jno. Baptiste) held their roles convincingly, though there were\u00a0some moments where they lost some punchlines, and the use of the stage could be\u00a0improved.<\/p>\n
Ironically, one of the subjects of the play was the heroism of the Secretary\u00a0General of the Civil Service Association who was championing the cause of the\u00a0workers at that historical moment. In the front row was His Excellency President\u00a0Charles Savarin and his wife. Some of the issues the play addressed 46 years ago\u00a0are still relevant today and it would be interesting to know what the former big\u00a0wig of the CSA, now DPSU, thinks of the situation in Dominica then and now.<\/p>\n
Nite-Box epitomizes the genius of Alwin Bully who at the tender age of 29 could\u00a0have created such a masterpiece of intertwining politics, humour, tragedy, social\u00a0commentary, and real entertainment in a single piece of artistic expression.\u00a0Michael Bruney who was just 21 at the time and having directed the play to\u00a0perfection also demonstrated how advanced the Dominican youth was and the\u00a0level of consciousness which existed in the 70s. Dominica was undoubtedly leading\u00a0the Eastern Caribbean in theatre.<\/p>\n
It is unfortunate that such a masterpiece of a production is staged in a makeshift\u00a0auditorium without the basic facilities. It is reasonable to conclude that if the group\u00a0can pull through such a top-quality production under these conditions, one can very\u00a0well imagine what could happen if the Arawak House of Culture was available.Nite Box is one of the Who Done It <\/b>thrillers that people cannot tell others about,\u00a0you must go and see it. Suffice to say that Mikey and Alwin would maybe have\u00a0inserted a note of caution that \u201cAll events referred to in this production relates to\u00a01977 and any semblance of prevailing conditions is strictly coincidental\u201d, which\u00a0would give some cover to the saying \u201cMore things change more they remain the\u00a0same\u201d.<\/p>\n
I had the privilege of being a member of the original cast and went on to perform\u00a0the play in close to fifty performances all over the Caribbean. I also directed the\u00a0play with a Caribbean audience in Cuba. La Cours Des Arte has succeeded in\u00a0presenting the Dominican population with an excellent production to which every\u00a0person should give an audience.<\/p>\n
With this level of performance and talent displayed in the Nite Box it is impossible\u00a0to imagine that the cast and producers would stop here, and it is for this reason that\u00a0I am convinced that Theatre is back and all that is needed is a home in the Arawak\u00a0House of Culture.<\/p>\n
It is ridiculous that in 2023 a primary school hall without any basic facilities for\u00a0theatre is the best Dominica has to offer amid all the extravagant spending on all\u00a0types of Sewo. Einstar LeBlanc, one of Alwin\u2019s lighting specialists of the 1970s, is\u00a0also back and did a wonderful job with the lighting effects.<\/p>\n
The Alwin Bully Foundation Inc. must grab the opportunity and adopt LA Cour Des\u00a0Arte in a great partnership to successfully accomplish the goals of the legacy of\u00a0the late great Alwin Bully. Kudos to all who made the production possible.<\/p>\n
Look out Dominica, Theatre is Back.<\/p>\n
We Dare You To Enter The Nite Box.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Theatre is back with a bang and Alwin Bully would be all smiles to know that just\u00a0five months after his journey to the great beyond that a group of young people\u00a0could have thrilled an audience with the Nite-Box forty-six years…","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":306685,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_cbd_carousel_blocks":"[]","footnotes":""},"categories":[13,38,8,235,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-306728","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-commentary","category-culture","category-entertainment","category-homepage-carousel","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n