Producer, Jambiz International, felt it was time to accede, and they feel that they have succeeded in making the revival better than the original mounting. Two members of the original cast – Camille Davis (Dimples) and Courtney Wilson (Chris) – return for the remount. They are joined by veteran actor, Glen ‘Titus’ Campbell, and young & upcoming thespian, Noelle Kerr (as the husband and wife team of ‘Steve’ and ‘Valerie’.

VIBES is set in the household of high-flying couple and career lawyers, Steve and Valerie Hurley. Their busy schedules and Valerie’s affinity for hosting social gatherings for upper St. Andrew socialites make the employment of household help inevitable. Despite some initial shortcomings, Dimples lands the job. Flirtatious, saucy, sexy and ghetto fabulous, she immediately has an impact on the household, including long-standing gardener, Chris, who sees her as easy prey.

Dimples and the “boss”, Steve, pretty quickly find that they are comfortable in each others company. Too comfortable, perhaps, for the liking of Mrs. Hurley and Chris. Comfort quickly morphs into something threatening, and soon Dimples finds herself at the epicenter of storm winds that threaten to blow the thin veneer off what was hitherto considered a successful marriage. This, and some other happenings, forces Chris to warn the “helper gal” that “before I mek you come in yah come mash up dem life, ah tell lie pon yuh mek dem fire yuh.”

Steve finds himself being uncontrollably pulled to qualities in Dimples, qualities he suddenly discovers are not characteristic of his wide, and forces him to tell Valerie, “ah don’t like yuh vibes.” Valerie finds herself in a strange land, totally taken aback at being confronted by a threat which hitherto would be considered innocuous – the possibility of losing her husband to someone she considers “below her”.

The entire Hurley household goes into a tailspin, creating the perfect setting for a dramatic conflict and play/counter play. Where it all ends will evoke some disquiet and mixed emotions amongst audience members, after a funfilled evening of non-stop laughter.

That VIBES is a typical Patrick Brown laugh-a-line comedy fest was already established in the earlier staging. Camille Davis, who has established herself as one of the most promising young talents on the Jamaican stage, announced herself to the Jamaican public with a very compelling performance in the original standing. Today, she feels that she is 5 years wiser and better able to mold a performance which will again blow audiences away.

After tomorrow’s opening, VIBES will embark on a short run, playing Tuesdays to Fridays at 8 p.m., and on Saturdays and Sundays at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. For more information, please call 473-4485 or 960-3585.

Confirmed New York dates and venues
Friday, May 28 – York College, Queens
Saturday, May 29 – Brooklyn College, Brooklyn
Sunday, May 30 – Truman High School Auditorium, Bronx

The New York performances have been arranged by Herman Hall Communications, under the auspices of his flagship, Everybody’s Magazine – a leading Caribbean/American publication which celebrates its 26th year of publication this year.

After these New York performances, Easy Street returns to Jamaica for encore performances in June at the Centerstage Theatre, before jetting off to Florida for several performances on 4th of July weekend.

More about Easy Street here

In the last section of the play, John (Glen Campbell) picks up a sexy female (Jane, played by Camille Davis) at his aunt’s funeral at the Dovecot Memorial Park. They immediately hit it off and head off for a tryst at a nearby hotel. The evening is going pretty much to script for John until he receives the surprise of his life, and learns that picking up strange women has its consequences … more here

“Truth be told, I have not done many naturalistic pieces over the years, and as such, Puppy Love represented a real challenge for me personally” said Samuels after playing to a full house at the Pantry Playhouse on opening night – last week Wednesday, March 24, 2010.

He went on to add that “we had six weeks of grueling rehearsals under the skillful directing of Patrick Brown and Trevor Nairne – easily two of the best directors with whom I’ve worked. They pushed us beyond areas we never imagined we could have reached, let alone surpass. It is such a wonderful feeling now that the public has had a chance to see the product of our labour of love, and is enjoying it so much. The feeling an actor gets from this sort of actualization is truly amazing“.

Get an overview of Puppy Love here.

Puppy Love is centered around a sultry and precocious 18 year old – Karen ‘Kar Kar’ Cross (played by Natalee Cole), who, under the influence of peer pressure, becomes romantically involved with her father’s best friend, Dick (played by Oliver Samuels), a man who is fast-approaching 60 years of age.

The romantic intrigue creates a nightmare for her overly protective father, Harry Cross (played by Earle Brown), who, when he finds out about his daughter’s relationship with his friend, swears that he has been double-crossed. The situation drives a wedge between the two men, who apart from being best friends for years, are also business partners.

Dick tries desperately to repel Karen’s predatory advances, but weakens and gets sucked in by her alluring and disarming charm, and stunningly beautiful and nubile body.

After years of a boring marriage, this unexpected attention is like a breath of fresh air, and Dick inhales perhaps a little too much. Harry too, finds himself in a quandary, as his ongoing liaisons with girls of Karen’s age rob him of a solid moral ground on which to base his objections.

Dick’s wife of 30 years, Denise (played by Dahlia Harris), turns out to be the only hope for a stabilizing agent in a confused situation, but she too faces her own moments of indecision. Does she walk away from her party of 30-odd years because of his indiscretion, or does she stand by her man irrespective?

Patrick Brown answers some of the piercing questions, and leaves others for the audience to ponder.

Puppy Love opens tomorrow, March 24, for a three week run at the Pantry Playhouse on Dumfries Road in New Kingston. After this, it will embark on an overseas tour, with stops in Canada, the USA and the Eastern Caribbean.

In Easy Street, writer Patrick Brown takes us on a journey to the city dump, and forces us to come face to face with some very compelling realities. He exposes the underbelly of a society beset with many social ills, but skillfully shows that the inhabitants of the dump who literally survive off the refuse of the wider society, are real people, with real hopes and aspirations, real failures and disappointments, real dreams and nightmares.

The story is carried on a ‘comedic vehicle’ like only Patrick Brown can, milking laughter from each and every scenario, but respecting delicate sensitivities.

The Easy Street cast is led by Glen ‘Titus’ Campbell, who is widely regarded as one of Jamaica’s most talented actors. Campbell gets yet another chance to milk another of Brown’s multi-dimensional characters, and the opportunity to wring every comic moment from the situations encountered.

The cast also includes the increasingly popular Camille Davis, who has now established herself as one of Jamaica’s leading young thespians. Theatre fans will still remember her and speak glowingly of her outstanding performance in last year’s “Sheep In Wolf Clothing”, as well as DIANA – which had its final performance in December 2009.

Courtney Wilson is also part of the energetic cast, alongside the hilarious Christopher Hutchinson, and songbird Sharee McDonald-Russell, who again appears courtesy of the Ashe Caribbean Performing Arts Ensemble.

Easy Street’s story revolves around Queenie (Camille Davis), the socialite who fell from grace and landed on ‘Easy Street’. After an uncertain start, she finds herself living among a truly diverse set of friends. There’s Fungus (Glen Campbell), who claims to have lost his wife, house, farm and ambition in “Jamaica’s 9/11″ – Hurricane Ivan. He claims to have an educated son in foreign, and clings to the hope that his “landed papers” will come through one day.

Living next to Fungus is the jilted artiste, Scab (Courtney Wilson), who sacrificed education and inheritance to pursue his art, and who still awaits his big break as a poet/artist/singer/dub-poet/sing-jay, and whatever else comes to mind … artistic that is.

Not too far away is the house inhabited by Princess (Sharee McDonald-Russell) and Bully (Christopher Hutchinson), the delusional ex-cop, who is always wearing his decade-old “uniform”, always armed to the teeth and is never off duty … although he hasn’t really been a cop for some nine years. Princess is Bully’s long-suffering wife of 15 years, who has a perennial black-eye and claims that “is cold she catch up in it”. She has the voice of an angel, but the unmistakable appetite of a horse.

Easy Street plays Tuesdays to Fridays at 8 p.m., and on Saturdays and Sundays at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. For more information, please call 473-4485 or 968-7529.

Writer in residence, Patrick Brown, has crafted yet another creative gem, this time entitled EASY STREET. The now popular and experienced Jambiz crew will again bring the colourful and multi-dimensional characters to life.

The cast will be led by Glen ‘Titus’ Campbell, widely regarded as one of Jamaica’s most talented actors. Campbell gets yet another chance to milk another of Brown’s multi-dimensional characters, and the opportunity to wring every comic moment from the situations encountered. Not too many actors have Campbell’s ability to find humour, even between the lines, on a consistent basis. In EASY STREET, he finds many such moments, yet still skillfully crafts the character he plays so that he effectively brings out the subtle nuances.

The cast also includes the increasingly popular Camille Davis, who has now established herself as one of Jamaica’s leading young thespians. Courtney Wilson and Christopher Hutchinson are also in there, as well as Share McDonald-Russell, who again appears courtesy of the Ashe performing Arts Ensemble.

EASY STREET is set on the edge of an urban dump, a tolerable distance from the unbearable stench, but not far enough to escape the everyday attention of the army of flies. The story revolves around Queenie (Camille Davis), the socialite who fell from grace and landed on Easy Street. Driven to the edge by an unkind surrounding, Queenie finds solace with her new found friends and blends right in, revealing in the process that not withstanding her wide exposure, it was in the squalor of Easy Street that she really learned about true friendship, loyalty and love.

After an uncertain start, Queenie finds herself living among a truly diverse set of friends. There’s Fungus (Glen Campbell), who claims to have lost his wife, house, farm and ambition in “Jamaica’s 9/11” – Hurricane Ivan. He claims to have an educated son in foreign and clings to the hope that his ‘land papers’ will come through one day.

Living next to fungus is the jilted artiste Scab (Courtney Wilson), who sacrificed education and inheritance to pursue his art, and who still awaits his big break as a poet/artist/singer/ dub poet/ sing-jay and whatever else comes to mind … artistic that is.

Not too far away is the house inhabited by Princess (Share McDonald Russell) and Bully (Christopher Hutchinson), the delusional ex-cop, who is always wearing his decade-old “uniform”, always armed to the teeth and is never off duty … although he hasn’t really been a cop for some nine years. Princess is Bully’s long-suffering wife of 15 years, who has a perennial black-eye and claims that “is cold she catch up in it”. She has the voice of an angel but the unmistakable appetite of a horse.

The award winning creative team which has worked with the Jambiz Christmas Productions throughout the years has again committed to the project. Artistic Director, Trevor Nairne has again been entrusted to provide creative leadership to the talented cast. Barbara McDaniel returns as choreographer and Jon Williams will again bring musical genius to our ears.

EASY STREET will have its World premier at the Centrestage Theatre in New Kingston on December 26, 2009, and will then play Tuesdays to Sundays at 8 p.m. On Saturdays and Sundays, there will also be a 5 p.m. (matinee) performance as well.