By Jairo Rodrigues
It was a dose of pure boredom that led Leon Cummings to take what has so far been the most rewarding decision of his young life. He was bored, he said, when he saw an advertisement by the Theatre Guild which interested him and decided to go for it. Today, Leon is heading towards being among the phenomenal dramatists of his generation.
Leon has played some impossible roles in his career, which he tackled head on, simply because, as he puts it, “I am blessed to have been influenced by some of the best.”
Some of his favourite local actors are Coleen Humphrey, Mark Luke Edwards, Gerard Gilkes and Henry Rodney – because of the motivation and strong impact on him. Among other notable names, he mentioned Jennifer Thomas because of her values and her strength and the fact that it was she who gave him his big break.
To Leon, drama is a chance to be someone else and experience different feelings and emotions. “It is another place to express yourself. Not only do you fit a persona but you also experience different personalities from the other actors. It is like meeting new and different people…,” he said.
Now 23, Leon was born on September 2, 1989 at the Georgetown Public Hospital. He grew up on Norton Street, Lodge which he remembers as a quiet neighbourhood with friendly people who had their occasional “buse outs”.
He has fond memories of cricket on the street and playing with his neighbours. His childhood friend, Constance Welcome, played a major role in who he is now, he said. “Words cannot describe how much she means to me. She is like my mother figure. She taught me how to write and instilled self-confidence in me.”
Leon was born differently-abled. His arms and hands were not fully developed in the womb and as a result he has stunted growth in his upper limbs. But apart from bad experiences in primary school, Leon told The Scene, his experience in society has been “normal”.
He attended Enterprise Primary at D’Urban Backlands, which he recalled as the most horrible part of his life. “By far, it was the worse experience I had with people. There were various groups of bullies that walked home behind me, teasing me all the way,” Leon recalled.
When he left primary school and started attending South Ruimveldt Secondary, things changed somewhat. He said it was not as hard there as it had been in primary school and he guessed it was because the students were mature. Leon subsequently sent on to the Guyana Technical Institute where he earned a Diploma in Commerce.
Today, he said, “I don’t experience shunning or being looked at as something different. So I go about my business normally. But for other people who may be blind or who cannot walk, it is very sad because of the lack of accessible resources in Guyana. They can end up getting the spirit that they have to prove something to be recognised. For me, it is okay but for others it’s not a very comfortable atmosphere.”
He mentioned that in his life he has been blessed with some beautiful people, especially his parents, “They had never treated me as if I had a disability. I never had discouragement from them. Anything I wanted to do, they encouraged me,” he said of his family.
Leon is the eldest of three siblings; he calls his brother and sister his “dawgs” since they have a close relationship.
Although he describes himself as “troublesome”, he grew up in a disciplined home, where, he noted, they had everything they needed and at times more than what they wanted.
Once he joined the Theatre Guild, Leon recalled, it took just about a week of role playing before he was cast in a play, Massacuraman.
After that, each momentous play he performed in left an everlasting print on him. He spoke of four plays that he deemed unforgettable, one being Shoes Blues, directed by Jennifer Thomas. “I loved this because it pulled me out of my shoes. It really pushed the barrier,” he said. He described the character he played to be loud, aggressive and insulting being the boss of an insurance firm when in reality Leon’s mannerism is calm and cool. “The director pulled all of the cast members out of their skins.”
A diff’rent kinda ting was a comedy show which used multiple sketches. “It was my first play where the director pushed and encouraged me to add in my own flavour and personality to the characters,” he said.
Then there was Makantalli, directed by Malcolm De Freitas. “I had to play a drunk’s role, which was a new and difficult character. The director had a lot of faith and Henry Rodney whom I see as a father figure helped me a lot.”
His most recent was To Sir With Love, directed by Ron Robinson. Leon said not only was he excited because this was his first lead role, but he got to work under Robinson, “It was an honour to work with him. All of the rehearsals were serene. He is just an undeniable genius,” Leon enthused.
Leon’s performance was genius as well, earning him a standing ovation at the end.
His father had died just three days before the play premiered. “It was very tough – very. There were times between the scenes when I was just praying for the lights to come on and the play to resume because when I had breaks something reminded me of him. I just wanted to get back into character. I directed all my energy to the performance.”
Commenting further on his experience in To Sir With Love, Leon said it was a mature play, on a whole new level of staging. “Being on stage with great actors is something that inevitably pulls you up! You got to take it up a notch. It instilled a love and appreciation for theatre doing that role; it was a blessing…,” he said.
He was twice nominated for Best Supporting Actor, once for Shoes Blues during the National Drama Festival and then for Makantalli during the Theatre Guild Awards. He said that both times he was not concerned about winning, but was just really glad to be nominated and to know that he had been noticed.
He believes that in order for the country to have a strong, viable drama industry, more schools have to be involved in the arts. He also mentioned an investment in a School of Drama, where the greats, legends and icons can be involved to pass on their skills to the younger generation.
Apart from the local actors he mentioned, he said he was inspired by Mohamed Ali who he believes is the most self-confident person there is. “I don’t think there is anyone like him, he had so much confidence in himself that whenever he made a prediction of knocking someone out he was always successful.”
He is also inspired by West Indies cricketer Brian Lara. He enjoys watching cricket and he reads a lot, he says it takes away the stress.
Leon firmly believes that anyone who has goals and dreams should chase after them, putting their faith and trust in God, always believe in themselves and striving always for excellence.
Leon dreams of one day starting his own firm. He sees himself probably writing a play; directing; producing. He would like to, at some point, experience the Hollywood scene, not as something permanent but just for the experience. He wishes too to go on Broadway. But right now, he’s content with learning as much as he can. “Right now, I’m just enjoying acting,” he said.
