Powerful Men and Women Concert another success

Garfene Grandison, Gleaner Writer

Another year has come for the staging of the Powerful Men and Women perform for Charity Concert and the organisers can be happy to note that the 2011 staging can go down in the history books as one of the best yet.

With a new production team under the vision of Thyra Heaven, executive producer, and Weston Haughton, producer and creative consultant, there was an almost seamless transition from one performance to another.

The well-produced show left many patrons wanting more out of the two-hour set.

The show's organisers can give themselves a pat on the back. That pat is not only to be received for producing a well-put-together and entertaining set, but also because of the group's continued philanthropy. The event, it must be remembered, is put on to raise funds for the Mustard Seed Community, a non-profit community-development organisation, with the objective of enriching and empowering the spiritually, psychologically and financially needy in the community.

Volunteers

Heaven, the brain behind the show's concept, stated that "the number of Jamaica's leaders who volunteer their time and finance to make the show a success has grown significantly over the years", with 2011 being no exception.

The usually stellar line-up consisted of Oliver Samuels, Madge Barrett, Carol Francis, Blossom O'Meally-Nelson, Tanice Morrison, Audrey Reid, Michael Abrahams, Aloun Assamba and several others.

The show commenced with the singing of the National Anthem followed by Michael Powell and Charmaine Limonius' rendition of You Raise Me Up. Immediately following the song was a skit entitled School Call, with comedians Oliver Samuels and Audrey Reid as the lead pair. Fuelled with old-school nursery rhymes and peppered with the strong Jamaican dialect, the opening scene was just right for putting the audience in a jovial mood. There was impeccable chemistry among the characters, and many persons could not control their laughter in the audience.

Cameal Davis, the 2008 Digicel Rising Stars winner, was the special guest performer, singing Pink Cadillac with In2nation as the backing band, a vocally powerful and equally entertaining set.

The fashion showcase featured three different lines; 'Jamaica Pride' in celebration of Jamaica's Heritage, 'African Splendour' and 'Evening Highlights', where Miss Jamaica World model contestant Maya Wilkinson was the special guest model, donning the stunning red fishtail gown that she wore on the Miss Jamaica World coronation night in September.

Dr Michael Abrahams, known for his comedic performances brought the first segment to a close on a high note as he spoke to issues relating to the Dudus extradition and trial, as well as the Jamaica Public Service (JPS). This went over well with the patrons as they repeated his famous line "Raise yuh hands if yuh light bill too high."

A 15-minute intermission did little to prepare the audience for the fact that it was to witness a 10-fold increase in entertainment value.

Haughton was overheard saying, "wait until the second segment" and what a segment it was.

Dr Blossom O'Meally Nelson kick-started this segment with her usual controversial political dramatic presentations. She took jabs at the People's National Party, the Jamaica Labour Party, and even new prime minister, Andrew Holness, was not to be spared.

A performance from Carole Reid, doing an opera piece titled The Royal Opera House of Kingston, gave a different feel to the night's proceedings, setting the tone for the final performances.

The festival-song medley performed by the all-male band of Linroy Edwards, Ian Wilkinson, Michael Powell, Emerson Henry and Robert Robinson was a show-stopper as they drew on old-school hits.

Closing the night's show was the Dancehall Queen Face-Off, a skit where the characters pretend to stage an international dancehall-queen competition.

In the end, Ecuador won, based on the audience feedback and Clelia Baretto de Hunter, consul of Ecuador to Jamaica, came out as the champion. Last year's champion Carol Francis, accompanied by Dance Xpressionz, brought the curtains down on the production.

Now in its 11th year, Powerful Men and Women in Concert had another successful staging with great performances, an excellent production and an overall great event that left patrons, both old and young, wanting more.