A scene from Father Ho Lung and Friends' 'Jam Reggae Opera Yes!' at the National Arena in St Andrew yesterday. - Norman Grindley/Chief Photographer

Long before Saturday's opening night at the National Arena, St Andrew, it was clear that the 2009 Father Ho Lung and Friends production would be perhaps the most ambitious yet, fusing reggae and opera; claimed to be a first ever in the world.

And just before Jam Reggae Opera Yes! opened to a near capacity house (and two of next weekend's shows are already sold out), part of Father Richard Ho Lung's opening address indicated that there would be a further ambitious intent, a biographical production about the Missionaries of the Poor. He said it was about the brothers' lives, his life and the life of Jamaica, as all are tied up.

So Jam Reggae Opera Yes! is a very ambitious project, grand not only in concept and the period of time it covers, but also the scale of the production itself. (All this takes some time, so the two acts comprising 31 scenes take about two hours, plus intermission).

Dramatic hanging

Added to the sheer mass of persons often on the stage and the excellent costuming that includes a tight golden dress on an curvaceous temptress and the force for good (with wings) which tussled with the devil on high, are the special effects.

So there is a dramatic hanging, a smoke-filled Eventide fire, a crown of worms on the head of a man taken to the brothers and the moment which brought the house down, glowing angels suspended in mid-air on either side of two brothers who were shot and killed by Paul.

Which brings us tothe story - or rather, the stories in Jam Reggae Opera Yes!. For it is not one sequential tale, but three which intersect and intertwine, requiring close attention to ensure comprehension and gratification beyond the continuous song and sometimes accompanying dance via which the tales are told.

The dominant theme and beginning story, to which the subsidiary tales are tributaries, is that of Father Luke, who rejects a homeless boy who was taken to him, partly because "I have my lessons to prepare at university".

The reggae begins in Scene 2, where Father Luke speaks (or should we say sings?) to an unseen God on high and is convinced to serve the poorest of the poor in a heavily dramatic scene where the power of the single spotlight is used to full effect. (And the lighting throughout Jam Reggae Opera Yes! is very effective, a strobe used on multiple women in black - Father Ho Lung and Friends are not afraid of a little female tight clothing and hip movement - tossing out glitter to simulate a hurricane).

"When do I start?" a contrite Father Luke warbles. "You start now!" God intones.

The infamous fire

The secondary story, Paul's, springs up midway Act 1, after Father Luke has confronted sloth at the Eventide home, a mento beat used as the workers there demand "what yu looking at me fa, staring at me fa?" and he angrily replies, "Yu neglecting the poor at Eventide Home." There has also been the infamous fire, done in a good piece of controlled stage chaos focusing gradually on the blind Rubeena who dies engulfed in smoke at the very end.

Paul is angry at his grandmother's death, asking why he was born; on the other side of the ocean, his brother (a policeman) and sister-in-law Melinda are in Atlanta (fireplace and all). While the wife is determined to return to Jamaica and use her abilities as a reporter to improve the situation, the husband pleads with her not to go. He does not prevail.

The third tale, that of Brothers Suresh and Marco, actually precedes Paul's in Jam Reggae Opera Yes!, although it is still subsidiary. It raises the opportunity for some Indian culture, mainly dancing, to be infused.

Double murder

The three stories fuse in a double murder by Paul of Suresh and Marco, martyrdom, reuniting of family, recrimination, remorse, forgiveness and final triumphant acceptance of God (led by Father Luke at the Monastery Gate) in Act 2, which has only one scene less than Act 1 but seems to move at a much more spirited (no pun intended) pace.

This may have been due in some part to a number of scenes running into each other without the lights going down; frankly, a few scenes which were delineated with the lights fading, were so short as to actually interrupt the flow of the production even as they added another building block to the tale.

One of the high points was Father Ho Lung's appearance in full Jamaican colours, including a cap, and dark glasses, dropping modern dancehall moves in tandem with two other cast members. There was a 'race' on stage, Ho Lung accelerating for a clear victory, and when he did Bolt's 'To De Worl'' the crescendo of applause and screams was deafening.

Strong musically

Visually, Jam Reggae Opera Yes! is very powerful and it is also strong musically, more than a touch of the classical infused with the Jamaican music forms. However, all the goodwill in the world will not make the National Arena's acoustics better than below average and the words could have been much clearer. The Gleaner was in a good position on the floor in the reserved seating; chances are those on the wings and in the balcony would have had a harder time hearing everything, key to getting the essence of the tales.

Also, in the epic battle between good and evil on earth and in heaven, there is an unfortunate reinforcement of evil as black and good as white in the heavenly tussle, although down below evil is red. Those with children will have to weigh exposing them to a very strong production with the more graphic elements that are essential to the tale.

It is a good tale, worthy of being told the brothers' resistance to the authorities over Eventide and the opposition to the Guilty By Association Gun Court charge showing that they are no wimps. And it is also made clear that they were not initially welcomed with open arms by everyone in the ghetto.

Another scene from Father Ho Lung and Friends' 'Jam Reggae Opera Yes!' at the Arena in St Andrew yesterday. - Norman Grindley/Chief Photographer