LEZA ‘Radika’ Singh is currently working to resuscitate her stand-up comedy career, and to re-launch her radio programme which created quite a buzz, “Sauce it up.”

The ‘Parika Backdam’ character is no stranger to the entertainment industry here in Guyana, and even abroad, and keeps getting better with her art. In fact, thanks to the skills she has been acquiring, Leza was able to take over the direction of the well-loved play ‘Romeo and Juliet’ at the last minute.

When the planning started for this full-length play, Leza had no idea that she would eventually become its director. She’d never directed any plays before! But she was thrown right into it, and came off quite successfully.

“It was a bitter-sweet experience for me,” Leza told the Buzz on Thursday, because even while a little apprehensive, she was dealing with a well-seasoned cast who had lots of experience in the field, and more so, were friends to her.

“Directing is a big task, so I’m glad I had the support. To me, it was a team effort,” she expressed. In the future, though, she looks forward to being able to have lots more time with her play.

Meanwhile, the first play she directed was a parody of Romeo and Juliet, one of the most popular Shakespeare plays that depicts the story of two lovers and the terrible strife between their families.

The ‘Signature Productions’ play, which Leza had to take over at the last minute, went down at the National Cultural Center last February 14. This version of the play had put a Guyanese twist to it with the two families being that of Bharrat Persaud (played by Michael Ignatius) and David Blackman (played by Mark Luke Edwards).

While all of the characters were fictional, they did draw elements from real situations in Guyana. The play was written by Leza, along with Maria Benschop and Clemencio Goddette who are no strangers to theatre and comedy as they are some of the faces behind the very popular ‘Nothing to Laugh About.’

The play addressed some serious issues and it utilized comedy, sarcasm, drama, farce, dark humour and satire to achieve it.

The cast included Michael Ignatius, Clemencio Goddette, Ladonna Kissoon, Aleena Hoalim, Mark Kazim, Charles Adrain, Mark Luke Edwards, Sophera Waldron, Denzil Jones, Yohance Koama, Andre Phillips, and Nirmala Narine.