Play tackles addiction, abuse and shame

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8: A play focusing on the “generational curse” of a Bermudian family is to be shown as part of a three-day conference focusing on women who have suffered abuse.

Winsome Lambe, the first lady of the Heritage Worship Centre wrote the play Trapped in the hope that it will inspire women like some of those she has found herself counselling in her role as the wife of Rev. H. David R. Lambe.

Guests need not be affiliated with any church or religion to attend. The play takes place this Friday at The New Testament Church of God at 8pm and will be followed by a series of workshops on Saturday and a worship and praise session on Sunday.

In the play, the first written by Mrs Lambe, a woman is raped and gives birth to an illegitimate daughter who is only told about her father when she is older. She ends up getting into a series of problems which includes a cycle of drinking and abuse.

The daughter’s own child later goes on to experience her own set of problems, as a result of her mother’s trauma.

Trapped, which stands for Tired of Repetitious Attacks Perpetrated to Personally Employ Destruction, explores the implications of one family’s decision to keep vital information under wraps and the detrimental effect it can have on future generations.

It also celebrates how many of life’s problems can be solved and how we can find closure.

“The reason I did the play is that in my role as the pastor’s wife at the New Testament Church of God Heritage Worship Centre, coming up, I’ve been counselling a lot of women and we recognize that a lot of women are dealing with abuse and they are dealing with a lot of other issues,” said Mrs Lambe.

“We wonder why certain things are happening in our society and it comes from a ripple effect — from things that happened in the past so that was the basis of me doing the play.

“Problems can become worse because of what has happened in the past — our grandmothers and grandfathers didn’t talk about these issues.

“Damsel Arise and Shine is the theme of the conference — damsel means woman or young girl and whatever bad situation you are in we want you to get out of it. There are a lot of opportunities out there you don’t have to stay down you can get up and get out. “Get out of your situation put the pieces of your life back together, you can take lemon and make lemonade. That is what we are trying to say.”

There is a six-strong cast and the main characters are the grandmother, the mother and the daughter. The daughter is the prominent one as she is young — 21st century and wants to let everybody know what’s going on. She is the one who reveals all the family secrets.

On Saturday from 10am to 2:30pm in the G.C. Smith Hall there will be a series of workshops for $20 which includes a light lunch.

Dr. Ruth-Mary Bean from the Radnor Road Christian Fellowship will discuss The Gift Within about unleashing our potential.

Rev. Carolyn Armstrong from Rhema Ministries will talk about taking off our masks and being ourselves in her workshop Authentically You. Finally, Rev. Karon York from the Heritage Worship Centre, will focus on the spiritual aspects of life in her workshop Beyond the Veil.

On Sunday morning from 11am there will be a guest speaker to join in worship.

In the evening from 5:30pm there will be an all female cast of talent from all around the island to join in singing, dancing and music.

For more information please call the church office at 292-5214.