Urban World

JA Story – The Musical

Rushing through traffic is a difficult task and rather silly, because you can not physically go anywhere. My destination was my friends (twins) birthday bash at Caribbean scene followed by a theatre show.

Musicals tend to appeal to one kind of audience, you either really love them or hate them.

JA (Jamaica) the musical is a historical tale of the richness of this country and how the British, the Asian Indians and Chinese became a part of their culture.

The history of Jamaica or any other country would be a challenge to convey in two hours. But Junior Douglas' creativity shone through as he used original songs and movement to illustrate a past not forgotten but rarely told.

Throughout the play, I found a favourite person for each art form (talent), Marcia Harper for the dancing, Caspian for the singing and last but not least, the narrator who held this production together. He was very funny and very natural; the audience had an immediate familiarity to him.

Marcia was enjoyable to watch; she seemed to enjoy what she was doing and easily stood out as someone who has rhythm and passion in her soul. Performing in all principles of the dance exceptionally, salsa, African and dancehall, she is clearly a strong dancer. The voice that got to me every time was Caspian, who bellows an extraordinary sound, so smooth and sensitive to the ear.

JA story premiered at Stratford Circus on October 28th and concluded on Sunday November 1st. This was a nice end to black history month, although it is not just in October, but every single day of the year. So pick up a book, cd, and learn about your heritage, you will find it very interesting.