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Caribbean Life, March 24-30, 2022
questions certain things,
chief among them ‘God’s
Work,’” it added. “You simply
count your blessings and be
grateful.
“But what happens when
the true source of your good
fortune causes you great
shame and is nothing short
of scandalous?” it asked.
Braata Productions said
the piece is set in St. Andrew,
a “comfortable” parish in the
southeast of Jamaica.
It opens in the tidy, stylish
middle-class residence of
Valerie White, a civil servant
and devout Christian.
She has been blessed
with a good home, a wonderful
husband, who is seldom
home, and an ambitious
daughter, according to the
plot.
On hearing in the news
that her husband may be
implicated in a drug bust in
Tampa, Fl, she realizes that,
essentially, she’s been living
a lie, “God’s Way” says.
It says the source of her
material happiness can
irreparably ruin reputations
and lives.
As Valerie, her deacon, her
close friend and her daughter
struggle to absorb the news,
the veneer of their quiet,
pleasantly perfect existence
is painfully ripped to smithereens,
revealing shocking
skeletons that will forever
change life as they know it,
according to “God’s Way.”
Braata Productions said
the play explores human
behavior, class, the price of
dignity, and “how we rise to
face thunderstorms that will
ultimately determine if we
perish or prevail.
“Its language is a thick
Jamaican dialect, which
is compact and colorful,”
it said. “Its characters are
deliciously Jamaican and,
despite the seriousness of the
situation, their problems are
likely to elicit laughs of deep
recognition in people of all
cultures.”
The actors are Marsha-
Ann Haye, Mitzie Pratt, Jerry
Benzwick and Epiphany
Samuels.
The director is Guyanese-
American Keenan N. Charles;
set/scenic design is by Harlan
Penn; costume design is by
John Eli Dacosta; and sound
design is by Joel Edwards
and Andrew Clarke.
Braata Productions, led by
Andrew Clarke, said it “stages
full productions of works
by playwrights from the
Caribbean and works about
the Caribbean experience as
uniquely felt by its migrant
population.”
Other programs include
educational programming,
community outreach and
folk performance.
Its mainstage productions
include plays from traditional
stalwarts, such as Trevor
Rhone and Sir Derek Alton
Walcott, to new works by
authors of the Caribbean and
its Diaspora.
“Braata” is a Jamaican colloquial
term, meaning a little
more, like a baker’s dozen.
RSVP online: https://www.
braataproductions.org/godsway
Braata Productions premiers
‘God’s Work’ in New York
‘Mi Nuh Know’
“Dancehall is a colorful art
form filled with different styles
and tempos … it’s a part of
what makes our culture stand
out,” said Shaggy. “I wanted to
push the envelope and revisit
the art of scatting with timing
and lyrics with a catchy
hook (sound system style) …
nothing is catchier than Eek-
A-Mouse’s “Wah-Do-Dem!”
Video director, Jay Will
(Sean Paul, Major Lazer, Lee
Scratch Perry, Spice, Damian
Marley, etc.) adds, “we had
a lot of fun filming the “Mi
Nuh Know” video. Shot in
and around Miami, the video
features cameo appearances
from local talent including
Walshy Fire and Popeye Caution
and shows Shaggy in his
element.”
Written by Shaggy, Omar
Thompson, Shane Hoosong,
Henry Lawes and Ripton Hylton,
“Mi Nuh Know” is produced
by Shaggy and Shane
Hoosong, engineered by Grant
Valentine, mixed by four-time
Grammy Award winner, Robert
“Hitmixer” Orton and
mastered by Gene Grimaldi at
Oasis Mastering.
Born Orville Richard Burrell
and raised in Kingston,
Jamaica, Shaggy got his start
as an MC in New York City’s
burgeoning Dancehall scene
soon after moving to Brooklyn
in his teens. Not long after
serving four years in the U.S.
Marines (including two tours
of duty in the Middle East
as part of Operation Desert
Storm), he inked his first
record deal and quickly scored
a global crossover smash with
“Oh Carolina.”
As the only diamond-selling
Dancehall artist in music history,
Shaggy, managed by the
Cherrytree Music Company,
has sold more than 40 million
album units to date, in addition
to landing eight singles
on the Billboard Hot 100 and
seven albums on the Billboard
200 (including four in the top
40). He has received 2 Grammy
Awardss and is among the
top three streamed reggae artists
of all time on Spotify.
Continued from Page 27
Continued from Page 27
Miller Theatre features Kenny Barron Trio
American Jazz Hall of Fame inductee,
who mesmerizes audiences with
his lyrical melodies and infectious
rhythms,” it added.
Honored by The National Endowment
for the Arts as a 2010 Jazz Master,
Kenny Barron has “an unmatched
ability to mesmerize audiences with
his elegant playing, sensitive melodies
and infectious rhythms,” the Miller
Theatre said.
Born in 1943 in Philadelphia, Barron
started playing professionally as a
teenager with Mel Melvin’s orchestra
and, while still in high school, worked
with drummer Philly Joe Jones.
At 19, he moved to New York City
and played with Roy Haynes, Lee Morgan
and James Moody, according to
Miller Theatre.
On Moody’s recommendation, Dizzy
Gillespie hired Barron in 1962 “without
even hearing him play a note,” the
Miller Theatre said.
After five years with Dizzy, Barron
played with Freddie Hubbard, Stanley
Turrentine, Milt Jackson and Buddy
Rich.
After working with Yusef Lateef and
Ron Carter in the early ‘70s, Barron
From left, Kiyoshi Kitagawa, Johnathan Blake, and Kenny Barron. Miller
Theatre
formed a trio with Buster Williams and
Ben Riley, which also worked alongside
of Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis, Eddie Harris,
Sonny Stitt and Harry “Sweets”
Edison.
Throughout the ‘80s, Miller Theatre
said Barron collaborated with Stan
Getz, touring with his quartet and
recording several legendary albums
including Anniversary, Serenity and
the GRAMMY-nominated People
Time.
During that time, he co-founded the
quartet “Sphere,” along with Buster
Williams, Ben Riley and Charlie Rouse,
which focused on the music of Thelonious
Monk and original compositions
inspired by him.
Miller Theatre said Sphere recorded
several projects for the Polygram label,
among them Four For All and Bird
Songs.
Continued from Page 27
Jamaican Andrew Clarke of Braata Productions performs “Rivers of Babylon”
during the 2018 Caribbean Amercan Heritage Month at Kings County Hospital in
Brooklyn. Photo by Nelson A. King
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