Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer

Christopher Daley

Sunday evening's 'Laugh Till Yu Belly Buss' at Scotialink, Liguanea, St. Andrew, did not live up to the promise in its abdominal wall splitting title.

Instead, at an event preceded by an extensive (though not exhaustive for the little energy balls) children's fun day, an audience of adults and various ages of younger folk gathering before the low stage area for the expected laughs, there was a good dose of hearty chuckles.

For even as the jokesters cracked away, some of the young uns played merrily, the swings scything the darkening sky even after the bounceabouts, mechanical bull and pedal-powered go-karts had been packed away. Jerry Benzwick hosted the fun day, which included a three-legged race, while Everaldo Creary called up a co-host from the audience for the evening session.

As such, the short stints by Elva, Christopher 'Johnny' Daley and Joan Andrea Hutchinson (who told the audience that she had been instructed to be funny) by and large walked the family line, which can be straight and for some boring, but they managed to inject some bends of laughter.

No belly busting

In the end it was far from belly busting, but there was a healthy dose of chuckles all around.

And the cause for the ScotiaBank fun, an Intra-Aortic Balloon Pump, was no laughing matter. The pump is used to increase blood flow to the heart and decrease the workload it has to do.

Before the jokes, though, came slick, coordinated moves from Dance Theatre Xpressionz, who came out in shiny black coats, heads bowed under the head covering, before they were removed to show bright yellow outfits. They did two stints on either side of a retro fashion show, going uptempo overseas first and then dancehall.

And after the laughter came song, Lenya Wilks closing off in excellent form.

Elva said that there are some people who stay at your home, 'licky licky' and when their stay is up "yu no see dem a move". "Wha dem name?" she asked. Some said 'squatter', but Elva corrected them and said 'pickney'. She compared her kind of childhood to those which are enjoyed now, saying that her mother would conduct "spot check like police - If she fin' nutten whe she no buy, straight back to de owner".

And once her mother hit her when she had done nothing wrong. When Elva protested her mother said "yu gwine do suppen tomorrow an I don' have de time".

Stealing message

Licks were also on Johnny's mind, who said his mother could throw pot covers around corners like a boomerang. He worked in the message to the children that stealing is wrong and told the story of two troublesome boys, Paul and Peter. Peter was sent to the pastor for a good scare, the preacher demanding "where is God?!" And Peter told Paul that "God los' an dem tink is we tief 'im".

Joan Andrea Hutchinson read the poem of an ICI who marked her box 'F-R-A-G-G-L-E' and the contents were duly broken up through rough handling. More word play of the Jamaican kind came with 'olabammy' on a restaurant receipt and a man ordering a "freshly squozen orange juice". 'Ivan Lef Me Inna Grief' spoke of a wanna-be crook who camped out in front of Courts and was disappointed and she also read about 'De Hog Name Crowd', as well as her 'Bad Advice' on a relationship.

The evening turned to song with Albira and Suhverto, before Lenya Wilks took the house down, First Cut Is The Deepest and Hideaway among the numbers that rocked before she went into Whitney Houston mode for the encore.

Elva