By Naeisha Rose
This fall, York College’s Performing Arts Center will tackle the topic of immigration when they present Jamaican writer Aston Cooke’s play “Single Entry.”
The performing arts center — located at 94-45 Guy R. Brewer Blvd. in Jamaica — will host the production Sept. 28 and Sept. 29 at 8 p.m. and Sept. 30 at 6 p.m.
“Single Entry” examines the lives of two working class Jamaican women who go to New York City to visit a relative and fall in love with the Big Apple despite some ups and downs, according to Cooke.
“‘Single Entry’ chronicles the lives of two unemployed women, Cherry and Sonia, their ingenious strategies to acquire visas to travel to the United States of America in search of a better life and the underground experiences as they face as illegal aliens,” Cooke said.
The comedy is filled with humor and satire and offers a slice of Jamaican life that will be, Cooke hopes, nostalgic not only to Jamaican audiences, but also to other Caribbean audiences and immigrants to America.
Co-producing the play with York College is Braata Productions, a nonprofit Caribbean performing arts and education organization located at 118-05 200th St. in St. Albans.
“Braata has been wanting to do this production of Mr. Cooke’s and with the conversations going on about immigration and immigration contribution, or the lack thereof in recent times, we felt it was important to mount the production at this time,” said Andrew Clarke, the founder and executive director of Braata. “It was a chance to add the Caribbean immigrant voice to the narrative and highlight not only our contribution to the American landscape with our talents and strong work ethic when we get here, but also to show how difficult it is to even obtain entry to the U.S.”
“Single Entry” was first performed on stage in 2003 at the Barn Theatre in Kingston, Jamaica.
York previously co-produced “Welcome to America: A Caribbean Musical” with Braata Productions in April 2017.
“We are happy to join forces with them once more,” said Clarke.
Tickets are on sale for $25 and can be purchased at either www.yorkp
Reach reporter Naeisha Rose by e-mail at nrose
