Oliver’s ‘Embassy Saga’ to fly out
There will only be a one-month local run for Oliver Samuels’ Embassy Saga, as international demand for the play has it booked up to December. It opens in Jamaica on Wednesday, April 10.
Samuels said “I can seriously state that this is one of the best productions Jamaica will ever see”.
“Who among us is without an ’embassy saga’ or embassy drama?” Samuels asked. “Do you remember that episode on JBC TV in the ’80s where a young handsome man dressed in earmuffs and winter coat tried to go overseas at Norman Manley but never knew he needed a visa? Well, if you thought that was funny, wait until you see this.”
Samuels did not mention that 2013 is super special for him. He feels blessed to be 65 years old this year and, with recent cries in many circles about ‘young people time’, Oliver has defied the odds by still reigning as the King of Comedy. What’s even more interesting is that his last production, Who a Di Don, was a most-watched play for 2012 and insiders predict that Embassy Saga will be even bigger.
How do you top two tours to the USA, two tours to Canada and a play that had a double billing 16 months after it first opened? Samuels wrote a brilliant script, assembled the appropriate cast and crew, recruited Douglas Prout to direct, and the result is a masterpiece. As with Who a Di Don, Embassy Saga delivers a compelling story of family life in Jamaica, but has more punchlines and moments of belly-cramping laughter.
Embassy Saga mixes suspense, drama and comedy. The audience will feel at times that they are watching a reality show, but nothing will prepare them for the dramatic end. It may be Oliver’s 65th, but Jamaicans got the present with Embassy Saga.
