Rundown attracts full houses

CNS Editor | 03/05/2018

The cast performs the opening song

(CNS Local Life): Rundown, the Cayman National Cultural Foundation’s (CNCF) annual comedy revue, returned to the Harquail Theatre for its 26th season on Thursday, 26 April, with a packed house each night over the four-day opening weekend. The show, which will continue until Sunday, 13 May, featured a special, opening weekend-only appearance by its creator Dave Martins, who performed songs from his days as a member of the Tradewinds band.

Martins also regaled audience with humourous stories about his interactions with well-known Caymanians during his time in Cayman and ended his act with a song specifically written for Rundown called “This Is Cayman”.

“It was great to have Dave back. He was elated to be back in Cayman to perform and that energy showed on stage,” said CNCF artistic director Henry Muttoo in a press release. “His new song was a musical representation of the 30-plus years he spent in Cayman and his love for the Cayman a lot of people may have forgotten, that we at CNCF have been trying to help preserve.

“It made mention of a few of the interesting characters he met and experiences he had here over the years. It was these very encounters with these characters and experiences that triggered Dave to write Rundown. There were other shows like Rundown in the Caribbean at the time, but Dave saw how our experiences in Cayman are unique. Rundown has always brought these experiences to stage in a way that made them recognisable and laughable.”

Dave Martins appeared as a special guest for the opening weekend

The new skits included “The Dancing Policeman”, “Kamana Bay Merry-Go-Round”, “Today Talk With Dwayne”, “Tourist Food”, “Mr Unfortunate”, “Why We Criticise”, “Governor’s Welcome” and “Where’s The Harquail?”

The 2018 show was written and compiled by Muttoo, with contributions from Martins and Matt Brown, and featured the “Institutionalised Rundown Idiots” – Brown; Leroy “Ital” Holness, who has performed in every Rundown thus far; Jevaughnie Ebanks; Rita Estevanovich; Lesley-Ann Bernard; Giselle Webb; Troy Rodgers; and Rachel Gepolla. The cast also included newcomer Eldon Chisholm, and the youngest member, Aiden Watler. The musical arrangements were provided by George Jones and Dave Martins.

There are six shows left: Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 6pm until Sunday, 13 May. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for youth and seniors and are available for purchase from the CNCF office, Funky Tangs, Healthcare Pharmacy (Grand Harbour) and Foster’s Food Fair (Airport, Savannah Countryside and The Strand).