'Family Remedy' misses the spot

Marcia Rowe, Gleaner Writer

There is much to be expected from a production that is described as "vivacious comedy" and presented as a "remedy for the family". But alas, Family Remedy the production currently being staged at the Theatre Place, in New Kingston, does not live up to those expectations.

The play is watchable. It tells the story of the wealthy uptown Thompson family, which includes Jennifer and Stanley (father and mother) and their children Sean and Kerian.

At the start of the play, the family seems perfect. That changes before the plot begin to take hold.

Peaches, the family's helper, tries to make sure the family remains in a state of instability. That instability, Peaches hopes, will mean a better life for her and Sandy, her daughter.

But unfortunately, to arrive at that is to first find the remedy for some loud sound effects, cantankerous characters, irrelevant scenes, inconsistent acting and poor directing.

An ear-piercing scream and a dramatic entrance by one of the female characters, in a semi-darkened theatre, signalled the start of the play. The fright meant the Nicholas Nelson-directed beginning heightened interest. But it was not maintained.

In the first set of scenes, Nelson seemed to be afraid of moving the characters, who sounded a little like lecturers, around in the space. Boredom set in.

But there were some moments of brilliance.

The acting was by and large weak, except for Kerry-Ann Parker who played Jennifer Thompson. She was able to capture the two emotional states of Jennifer beautifully. Parker's outfit didn't help though, instead of looking pregnant, as she should have, she looked as if she had stolen a chicken and hid it under her blouse.

While Shanique Brown as Sandy also gave a creditable performance, at times some of her lines went a begging.

Enjoyed roles

Joel Miller, as Bruno the gardener and Jodian Findley as Peaches the helper seemed to have enjoyed their roles immensely. But the taller Findley was at times too loud for the intimate space of the theatre. The gardener seemed to have grown into his part, perhaps due to an increase in the number of lines given to his character towards the end of the play.

Chevannes Peters (Granny Rose) was more effective as the ghost. And Jason Williams (Stanley) Najeary Bennett (Sean), Renea Williams (Kerian) Fabian Barrack Mada Mira and Mrs Codrington) completed the cast.

Barrack also penned Family Remedy. In his programme note he wrote: "There were times I felt like giving up, as I just did not know how to fill in the empty spaces, though I had a general plot idea." Perhaps if he had left the spaces empty that would have been the remedy for the irrelevant scenes.

One such debacle was the opening "scream". Unless its purpose was to be a precursor to the many sound effects that plagued the Saturday evening performance, its relevance to the development of the story was lost.

Another need for a remedy presented itself in the characters' tendency to quarrel for no apparent reason, along with the writer's noticeable intention to present groups of people (like Mrs Codrington, the teacher who steals and blames it on her low wages) negatively.

The story unfolds in two settings: outdoor in front of the veranda (stage right) and the interior of the living room (stage left) and both areas were modestly decorated - but that was before the talk about it being a fantastic house in an upscale neighbourhood - then modesty gave way to mundane. However, the Quiendell Ferguson-designed costumes were practical.

In spite of its somewhat murky remedy, Family Remedy is worth seeing, by teenagers with adult supervision.