IN our world of popular entertainment it is touching to see how time passes and how many people who have shared much of their time and talent with us have moved on to the “celestial stage”. We are left to reflect on the contribution which they made while they were here. Some of them might not have been known to the wider community, while others have remained well recognised.Theatre producer Sydney Reid, who gave much of his time and energy in contributing to Jamaican theatre, especially in Montego Bay, made his exit, recently. Having served western Jamaica well, his name is well known, as he incited good, clean fun on the theatre stage.As a producer, he was a hard-working individual. He was associated with sources of entertainment created by well-known local playwrights from whom they would have learned that theatre work is not so easy, despite how it may seem.Making a financial success in Jamaican theatre is not an easy road, either, but Sydney Reid was determined that he would not give up on the challenges to bring worthwhile performances to share with local audiences. He never stopped looking for the best and for that he came to be respected.In 1978, the Little Theatre Movement in Kingston staged the pantomime,

Johnny Reggae, which turned out to be an overwhelming success at the Ward Theatre in Kingston. When Sydney came to see for himself he made contact with the Little Theatre’s management and negotiated to take

Johnny Reggae from Kingston to Montego Bay to be performed at the Strand Theatre.On opening night, and after, the streets around the Strand in downtown MoBay was jam-packed with theatre-goers, while vendors rushed in to get their piece of the action and soon labelled their stock

Johnny Reggae; from chewing gum to a range of other ‘good stuff’ to munch on. Nuff people had the time of their lives, and to this day

Johnny Reggae stories are still being remembered and retold down ah Bay.Starting from Kingston,

Johnny Reggae was a big hit for theatre-goers. In Montego Bay, the crowd which gathered at the Strand was large; so large the police had to ensure that crowd control, complete with barriers. The patrons soon filled up the seats in the theatre “up to the ceiling”, as some said jokingly. It was

the night of Sydney Reid’s theatre life. He had made the mark as a successful producer.From then on Sydney continued to dream of another

Johnny Reggae night in MoBay. The production had returned to its Kingston base and life in Montego Bay had to go on. To fill the need, Sydney Reid persevered in what he could do for theatre down ah Bay. He was ready for challenges. Still, he pressed on, determined that the day would come when MoBay would have its own modern theatre and be ready to present the best on the MoBay stage.Sydney made frequent trips to Kingston to invite other producers to visit the ‘West’ as often as they could to put their work on stage. He was a friend of the Montego Bay Little Theatre Movement (MLTM), which had a long history in down ah Bay and, in its later years, its management was trying its best to overcome the many challenges, in particular, restoring the theatre building and its fittings. MLTM wanted success onstage too, but the difficulties encountered were not easily overcome. For his part, Sydney kept doing what he could to assist.This year the curtains came down, at short notice, for Sydney, who had begun having health challenges. On April 7, he passed away at his home down ah Bay. His funeral service followed at Calvary Baptist Church in Montego Bay. He is survived by his wife Stephanie and their two daughters to whom condolence is sent.May his dream of a splendid Montego Bay theatre be one day, one day, as old-timers say, fulfilled, and hopefully the name of Sydney Reid will not be forgotten. He had reached the age of 69 with some of his dreams unfulfilled, but he still had hopes. There is hope that the memories of his contribution to the Jamaican theatre will not fade.Walk good, Sydney Reid, a man who always dreamed a positive dream for others as well as himself. 

Who mash up the dolly house?How much lower can we go? In the name of all decency, how much lower will we sink in order to make dirty money? Now it’s eight dollies beautifully clad in Jamaican national costumes highlighting the bandana plaid. The eight beautifully made samples of how attractive Jamaican crafts can be and when properly marketed could make their own contribution to building up the treasury.Just for the record, it is India which created the bandana plaid fabric, but we have made it our own for some time now. Since the declaration of Independence, bandana plaid has been taken over by us to create what we call our national costume. The Jamaican brand is now known far and wide, to the extent that the bandana fabric is fully associated with us and the development of interesting souvenirs for the tourist trade. Dollies, dressed in bandana plaid outfits, have become very popular as souvenirs. The quality of the designs and the neat finish of the colourful pattern for costumes have made for good keepsakes. By the way, do you know that at one time it was the Government of Jamaica which controlled the sales of the bandana fabric? Why, I never knew, but there must have been a reason.In our present time of urgency to keep foreign money coming it is surprising that, up to now, there have not been really more efforts for strong sales drives to earn more in the souvenir trade. Will that be the excuse offered to claim that Jamaican dollies are much loved in England? So what about the drugs? Well, ahm, Your Honour…Look here nuh!What we need is a serious answer on why there was drug/cocaine embedded in dollies to be sent to England? That is really mashing up the dolly house. Thankfully, the recent acts of defiance of the law will be given what criminal minds deserve. Stuffing a child’s toy with dangerous drugs like cocaine is nothing to be proud of. These matters are being taken seriously. We can’t keep mashing up the dolly house. Certain jokes are not funny again. D-r-u-g-s is definitely nothing to laugh at. Playing around with dangerous drugs can mash up any dolly house. You get it? 

Barbara Gloudon is a journalist, playwright and commentator. Send comments to the Observer or

gloudonb@yahoo.com.