PLAYWRIGHT and theatre producer Basil Dawkins threw his hand in the mix and opened his latest production Guilt Tripon December 27 last year, just around the time when a number of other theatre productions did so in the Corporate Area. And with just over a week on stage, he has no complaints.
The seasoned producer says things are going well for Guilt Trip, which has a cast featuring comedy king Oliver Samuels, veteran actress Ruth Ho Shing, and stage regular Dennis Titus.
However, despite his optimism at the start of his run, Dawkins still bemoans the ever-increasing costs to mount a production given the economic climate.
“Money is the biggest challenge when one is staging a production at this time, and the bad thing is that one cannot up the ticket prices. I believe $1,500 is what the market can take at this time. I am yet to see any evidence that the market is ready for an increase.”
Oliver Samuels
Dawkins explained that the lion share of his budget goes into advertising as well as theater space rental. The latter, he notes, is of critical importance and finding suitable space available for the extended period is necessary to recoup on the investment.“Luckily, I have forged an alliance with the Little Little Theatre. Ever since they started doing commercial theater in that space, I approached them and have remained there ever since. So I don’t have the uncertainty of having to move up and down,” said Dawkins.
Forging alliances seem to be a major part of Dawkins’ make-up, and one other coalition is with actor Oliver Samuels.
Guilt Trip is the second of an informal five-production deal that the two have hammered out.
“When I was going through the script for Divorce Papers with my director last year I said I would really want Oliver for the lead role, but thought there was no way I could get him away from his own production company. Little did I know he was in the middle of folding his own company to concentrate more on his acting. So both things coincided. We met, he liked the script and set the parameters. It has been a successful collaboration so far. I am amazed how easy it is to work with Oliver and the good-natured way he takes criticism. I have also been able to convince him to take on more age-appropriate material, which showcases a more multi-dimensional approach and has been embraced by his audience locally as well as in the UK, North America and the wider Caribbean where Divorce Papers has toured.”
Oliver Samuels, Ruth Ho Shing & Dennis Titus back stage
Guilt Trip examines how a woman’s past continues to haunt her and those around her. The play is set to run until April 10, after which the production goes on tour overseas.
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