Tuesdays @ the theatre | Local summer season to open with erotic play

Like the recording academy which has a nominations cycle, and Hollywood with their string of summer blockbusters, it seems the local theatre scene also has its cycle.

For those who are looking to hit the theatres this weekend, there are currently no new productions, and the options are few and far between.

Local theatre professionals are not particularly alarmed at the perceived stagnancy; rather, they point towards the staggered nature of Jamaica's multiple theatre seasons.

They say the absence of new plays is not to be taken as a sign of waning theatre activity, but an indicator that local thespians and their production crews are toiling away at rehearsals in preparation for the summer theatre cycle.

"While there is nothing new, things are still happening. There are things playing," said Michael Daley, Actor Boy Awards committee member.

"The local season actually starts in December. It used to be mostly Boxing Day, but it's now spread across December," Dahlia Harris told The Gleaner. The Pantomime has been a pillar which funnels patrons to the theatre on an annual basis, and it's opening day has become a marker for the beginning of the local theatre season.

Playwright and one of the principals of the Miss Jamaica World Franchise Aston Cooke, says that the local theatre scene has multiple seasons, and the next one is just around the corner.

"Most of the productions open on Boxing Day, and they run for about three months. Another batch goes into play in and around March or April. After that you have a summer batch, which is about to open. It's the July turnaroun. They're getting ready for the summer productions," Cooke told The Gleaner.

Proving Cooke right, young veteran playwright and recent Actor Boy Award winner David Tulloch is preparing to open a production next month.

"I'm about to open on August 1. This will be Jamaica's third erotic play, and it's not for the faint of heart," Tulloch told The Gleaner.

After the success of erotic thriller, Risque, and the ever-popular follow-up, 3SOME, Tulloch will close his sensual trilogy with the final instalment of the production called Sugar Daddy. Tulloch, who works to provoke audiences, will paint a portrait exploring the issues within middle-class marriages and the downtown common-law arrangements.

With seduction, nudity, profanity, action, and strong sexual content, Sugar Daddy promises high-quality drama, with Tulloch himself taking on the title role. Also starring in Sugar Daddy will be Ricardo McFarlane and Samantha Brevett.

The production will be housed at The Blue Room at The Phoenix Theatre, 8 Haining Rd, Kgn 10.

Sugar Daddy is scheduled to run on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., and again on Sundays at 5 p.m.