"Gouverneurs de la Rosée"

Community Theatre
that Brings the
Community Together

After more than a year of rehearsing, hard work, and personal sacrifice, on Saturday, September 15, Theatre Mapou presented their adaptation of Jacques Roumains "Gouverneurs de la Rosée" to the community. Under the direction of Jean-Claude Eugène, the group turned a chilly Saturday night into a warm, pleasant evening. After a very tragic and somber week in these United States, the community was ready to come out and support. Television had been, rightfully, preoccupied with the tragic disasters in New York and Washington, DC, since Tuesday, so, on Saturday more than a hundred were ready for some good entertainment.

The mostly older crowd waited patiently as the WATTCH organization was honored for their 10 years of servicing the Haitian community. The play, "Gouverneurs de la Rosée," is an adaptation of the famous novel by Jacques Roumain. Primarily, it is the story of Manuel, who, like the prodigal son, returns to his native home, after years of cutting sugar cane in Cuba, to find the land devastated by drought and the families divided by feud. Manuel preaches about collective work and unity in order to bring peace and water to the land, and in the process falls in love with Annaise, a young woman from a feuding family. Manuel meets with some major challenges, especially from Gervilien, his main opposition.

The show was well presented with some excellent performances. Among the stand outs were Arnold Joseph, who played Manuel, Patrick Eustache, who played Gervilien, Léon Boursiquot, who played Bien-Aimé (Manuel's father), and Solange Nestor, who played Manuel's mother, Delira. Honorable mention should go to Myrnette Joachim for a very flirty performance of Annaise, Manuel's love interest. Other notables in the play were Sterne Nestor, Nadine Cassamajor, Patrice Saint Germain, Gerard Severin, Lyonel Desmarattes, and Jean-Marc Vainqueur.

Patrick Eustache brought a chill to the villainous roll of Gervilien, evident by the silence of the audience when he was on stage. The audience also appreciated the chemistry between Manuel and Annaise. Sterne Nestor provided comic relief with his interpretation of Simidor, the old neighbor. Léon Boursiquot and Solange Nestor, with ease and experience, delivered solid performances, and Arnold Joseph played the lead roll of Manuel with strength, but also gentleness when necessary.

Community theatre assembles many in a community with nothing more than the love for theatre. With full time jobs, families, full schedule of classes, these people sacrificed many weekends of their lives in order to keep the Haitian culture alive in America.

Their efforts are well appreciated.

© echodhaiti.com, Sept. 2001