CNCF gives new life to decades-old play
(L-R) Penny Phillips and Consuelo Ebanks in the 1991 production of The Fallen Angel & the Devil Concubine
(CNS): Almost 25 years after local actresses Penny Phillips and Consuelo Ebanks portrayed colourful characters Katie and Lettie, respectively, in the Cayman premiere of The Fallen Angel & the Devil Concubine, the Cayman National Cultural Foundation (CNCF) is remaking the play as part of the Harquail Theatre’s 30th anniversary celebrations.
Groundwork Theatre Company originally created the play in May 1987 through collective improvisation at the Jamaica School of Drama. Upon completion of the improvisation process, playwright Pat Cumper was asked to script the play. Phillips and Ebanks first performed The Fallen Angel & the Devil Concubine in Cayman in 1991.
The production is getting a new life through the efforts of CNCF artistic director Henry Muttoo and local actresses Rita Estevanovich and Lesley-ann Bernard, as they bring their interpretation of the play to Cayman audiences.
“Filling the shoes of Consuelo Ebanks and Penny Phillips will not be easy but Rita and Lesley both have the talent to create memorable roles,” Muttoo said. “I look forward to helping them dig deep into their creative selves, discover and reveal, through their performances, the real ‘Katie’ and ‘Lettie’.”
The play is set in a derelict house occupied by two equally derelict old women. Both women lay claim to ownership of the house, using as evidence several half-truths and fantasies concocted to help them heal the scars created by traumatic events in their lives. As they reveal each other by peeling away the layers of make-believe and secrecy, the truth of their situation comes out, bringing them to the realisation that they have only each other, in an unforgiving world.
The dramatic comedy will be performed at the Harquail Studio Theatre on 4 and 5 December at 8pm and 6 December at 6pm. Tickets, at $25 for adults and $20 for seniors, are available from Foster’s Food Fair in The Strand, Funky Tang’s, Health Care Pharmacy in Grand Harbour and the CNCF offices.
For reservations, call 949-5477 or email CNCF.
For a full calendar of the Harquail Theatre’s 30th anniversary events, go to the CNCF website.
Category: Culture, Drama, Performing Arts
