Actor Boy Awards returns to the stage | Entertainment

With the final staging of the Actor Boy Awards to be held virtually in May 2020, next month, it will be three years since the theater community has come together to celebrate its achievements and present awards to outstanding members and productions. Nonetheless, members can now breathe a sigh of relief as, according to now-chief awards organizer Suzanne Beadle, things are on track for the return of the Actor Boy Awards in March 2024.

The hiatus, she explained, is largely due to the impact the pandemic has had on theater in Jamaica.

“There was no theater due to COVID restrictions. The Actor Boy Awards are all about judging and rewarding members of the theater community over the course of the year, so if there’s no live theater, there’s nothing to judge and reward,” she said. the gleaner.

She continued, “It was awful. There are several production companies that, that’s what they do. It’s their 9-5. It’s not just who you see on stage, it’s the writers, the producers, the ushers, the front of the stage who lost their income overnight and not everyone had a 9-5, not everyone had a day job or a hustle We had to sit and watch the airports and airlines open and be full to capacity and we were told we couldn’t open and then when they opened we had to operate at 70% of our ability. People had closed their businesses, people had migrated. We took a big hit. I don’t even think we really realized the implications of the hit.

COMMITTEE CHANGES

As the community picks up the pieces and returns to the stage, Actor Boy Awards actors have begun to do the same. Former event organizer Maurice Bryan officially stepped down and handed over to Beadle and several other changes were made to the committee structure.

“The restrictions were lifted in the middle of last year and we just weren’t ready. We had to put some things in place and so we had to make the decision to work to get everything in place for December 31. , so that on January 1st we would be ready,” she explained.

They have now set up an interim committee and started the selection process for the current productions.

“We have the judges in place, they’ve had training and they’ve seen the shows that opened in 2023, so the judging process is up and running. We are now in the process of putting together a new administrative team that will manage the awards. So we’ll be judging all of 2023, and then on or around World Theater Day in March, we’ll have the Actor Boy Awards show,” Beadle said.

The news of the show’s return has excited and invigorated the theater community. Nominee and multiple award winner Rosemary Murray Tingling said she couldn’t be happier.

“I’m so thrilled because we were all kind of in a bubble for a while. Nothing was happening so I’m glad to see the theater is back, although we don’t have enough venues to support the number of productions possible. I’m glad to see that some sense of accomplishment can come for those who have braved it since the pandemic and staged productions. I’m thrilled!” she exclaimed enthusiastically.

His feelings were shared by playwright Basil Dawkins.

“There is an understanding of why we didn’t have it because COVID had put a dent in the whole industry. We all understand it and we work with it. Most things are dead and need to be resurrected, and I’m glad that efforts are being made to revive them and give them some energy and life. Hopefully something good or even better than what we had before will emerge,” he said.

For Beadle, the Actor Boy Awards, which usually take place on a Monday because that’s the only night the theater is closed, are far too important to pass up.

“It’s the only thing we have to do together. It’s the only night we can get together and celebrate. It’s tough – sweaty, back-breaking, pocket-pocketing work. It’s time for us to say look what we did, look what my friend did and also to show what we can and have done as a creative community. Jamaica is considered the theater capital of the world. We can’t not have the Actor Boy Awards.

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