MORE THAN 300 Bajans and other West Indians had the ample opportunity to laugh at themselves when the popular stage production Laff-It-Off, that delightful comedy, came to Brooklyn during a United States tour.
The show actually attracted hundreds of Bajans wherever the comedy’s cast and crew went in Boston, Florida’s Fort Lauderdale and New York.
“You know I enjoyed it thoroughly,” said Sandra Hunte, a Bajan who has been living and working alongside her husband Christopher Hunte, a prominent fashion designer in New York City. “It certainly brought back wonderful memories of life back home. We enjoyed every minute of it.”
Petra Roach, director of the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. in the US, shared that sentiment.
“There were so many of my childhood memories that the presentation stirred and it was done in a very funny, a very clever way,” said Roach who played a key role in bringing the show to the US by extending the tourism agency’s helping hand to the organisers. “It was all done in a very sensitive fashion. Just listening to the whole auditorium and people’s reaction showed that it was a tremendous success.”
The skits on stage and the mix of video and music gave realistic and earthy portrayals of life among working class Barbadians. The spoofs on cross-dressing males, the gay lifestyle and hints of prostitution struck a particularly comical note for an audience bereft of the give and take of Bajan village life.
The skit about men who were the world’s best liars, the $10 price tag for a sexual encounter and the exchanges between married couples to determine the truth about their relationship hit a responsive chord among the audience.
The piece on thieves planning a home invasion was quite relevant given the rising concerns about crime in Barbados. So too was the portrayal of investors meeting with a cabinet minister to plan a deal, triggered peals of laughter.
The production’s realism and the natural style of the performers, especially Toni-Anne Johnson, Simon Alleyne and Ishiaka McNeil added to the level of the audience’s enjoyment.
Little wonder, then, that Ian Estwick, a co-founder of Laff-It-Off, relished the upbeat response of people in the auditorium.
“The audiences in Florida, Massachusetts, wherever we went were delightful,” said Estwick. “It certainly helps when we notice the reaction on people’s faces and their enthusiasm. However, Bajans in Brooklyn were the best. People in Boston and Fort Lauderdale enjoyed themselves thoroughly but the best response came in Brooklyn. We are really trying to take our culture to people abroad and show that it can bring joy to audiences.”
McNeil, a key member of the cast, summed the situation well when he said “I like performing for the Bajans in New York. All of the Barbadians in the other places were very receptive but New York took the proverbial cake.”
What next? Both Forde and Estwick said that they plan to be back in the US next year.
“We very much appreciate the support of the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. and Petra Roach, whose assistance made it all possible,” said Estwick. “We are coming back next year.”
Colin Mayers, Consul-General in Miami, signalled his support as well. In a message published in the show’s programme he said: “Be assured that under my tenure the consulate is committed to encourage and assist such praiseworthy efforts.”
For her part Roach, who is often praised for “doing a fantastic job” in the United Kingdom when she headed the tourism agency’s office in London said the Laff-It-Off production “showcased some of the talent Barbados has to offer and it is an indication of the opportunities available to Bajans involved in the arts”.