By LINCOLN DEPRADINE
Veteran playwright Marcia Brown wrote the play “I Need to Know My Father” which first appeared on stage to live audiences in 2011. The response was “overwhelming” to what Brown describes as “a loveable play”.
“It went on a series of runs; a number of churches used it as a fundraiser. We did it on a cruise in 2011 and also in 2016,” Brown said in an interview with Share.
As Father’s Day approaches, Brown is bringing back “I Need to Know My Father”, a multi-layered play with many messages, because – among other things – she believes hundreds more ought to see it, including an “untapped market of youth”.
“I have a steady stream of supporters who would come and look at my play, no matter what mi ah do. But I would love for the younger people to start coming out; the late 20s, early 30s – that sort of age group,” Jamaica-born Brown said.
“They want to go out but they haven’t been exposed so much to this sort of theatre. They would go to comedy shows and reggae shows and stuff like that; but I want to get them to come to a play.”
“I Need to Know My Father” is produced by Brown’s company, Marcia Brown Productions. She is not only the playwright and producer, but also has an acting role.
Her stage character is “Louise Perkins” – a committed grandmother, great-grandmother, maid and believer in God – who is married to the simple and humorous “Roy Perkins”, who is a deacon.
Veteran actor Errol “Naggo” Morris is cast as Roy Perkins. He and Brown are the only actors who have previously performed in “I Need to Know My Father”.
For the other five actors – Krystal Victoria, Tamika Wilson-Brito, O’Neil Taylor, P.K. Radcliffe and Michelle Dolly – it’s their first time in this production.
It’s also the first time they’re working on a theatrical piece by Marcia Brown Productions.
Victoria plays “Lisa Perkins”, the 16-year-old daughter of “Sarah Perkins” (Wilson-Brito) and “Jonathan Bonavitch, Jr.” (Taylor).
The young man’s parents are “Jonathan Bonavitch, Sr.” (Radcliffe) and “Claire Bonavitch”, played by Dolly. Claire shuns Sarah because the teenager is not of the same social standing as her son.
Brown said the return of “I Need to Know My Father” to the stage already has led to requests from two churches that would like to use it as a fundraiser later this year.
“There are moments in theatre history worth repeating, usually where the message and audience resonance are so great, we cannot get enough,” Brown said of the play, describing it as a “true-to-life dramedy filled with drama and belly-full of laughs”.
The play, set in Jamaica, has a universal storyline and highlights experiences to which audiences can relate, said Brown. They include stereotyping.
“Where you come from does not dictate where you want to go in life,” said Brown, who has been producing theatre in Toronto for more than 20 years.
“The play also talks about classism and honesty. Don’t think you can be dishonest in life and you’re going to get away with it. It will catch up with you,” she added.
Other highlights of the play, said Brown, are the importance of the presence of parents in a child’s life and development and immigration, “with a mother deciding to go foreign (abroad) leaving her children to be raised by a grandmother and not knowing when they’re going to see their children again.
“They are here and they are sending back money but by the time they see the child again, the child is all grown up.”
The play, as a whole, reinforces how very important “theatre as culture” and storytelling are, Brown told Share.
“We come from the era of Anancy stories and Miss Lou told all these fantastic stories. You can get laughter out of it but you can learn from it at the same time,” she said. “We can talk about anything on stage and get away with it because we are playing characters; we’re not playing ourselves.”
“I Need to Know My Father”, for those who have seen it, “brings people to tears. People have cried. People laugh until dem weak; dem move from laughing to crying. It’s highly emotional, but it’s highly comedic at the same time,” said Brown, who started acting in Jamaica. She was a part of the renowned production “Front Room”, performing alongside Jamaica’s King of comedy Oliver Samuels.
The first staging of the return of “I Need to Know My Father” is this weekend, June 15 at 8:00 p.m. and June 16 at 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., at the Jamaica Canadian Centre, 995 Arrow Road.
It moves to Oshawa at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, June 23, at Eastdale Collegiate and Vocational Institute, 265 Harmony Road.
Tickets and information are available by calling 416-843-8787.
