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Play On! By Talawa Theatre @Belgrade Theatre 26 / 09/ 24

Review by Vidal Montgomery

The press night performance of Play On! - A Broadway Blues with a twist on "Twelfth Night" - was not undersold in terms of bums on seats ( because it was a full house, and based on this showing it deserves a full house everywhere it goes!), but in terms of spectacle; because for the near-three hours running time, it was thoroughly engaging, spectacularly entertaining and, despite dealing with some serious subject matters ( such as how a misogynistic Harlem resists change, made all the more relevant with the recent revelations around Music Moghul Sean Comb's recent indictment), it was joyful for the audience from start to end, evidenced by the raucous laughter, gasps and applause throughout.

The title "Play On!" may also refer to the four year development process to get a work of this magnitude and depth and craft and intimacy and nuance in front of a live audience; it is no mean feat that this splendid work of Ellingtonian excellence by Liam Godwin and Benjamin Burell is finally in front of an audience, and with a truly magnificent cast from top to bottom:

Although the dramaturgy obviously has its focal characters, the dancers / understudies / supporting cast acquit themselves equally well, and the audience is gifted with over a dozen amazing voices ( of which Lifford Shillingford was my personal favourite ), who perform comparably, shouldering the responsibility of energetic dance, tense drama and soulful song, and carrying the narrative along. This for me is the most captivating thing about this show. Tanya Edwards as Miss Mary and Llewellyn Jamal as Jester deliver stylish and soulful performances late on into the second act just I thought the show had probably reached its peak - boy was I wrong!

The core story of Play On! revolves around the day Duke Ellington loses his muse, and the lengths- and distance! - one lucky lady will go to to help him get it back; Earl Gregory, Koko Alexandra, Tsemaye Bob Egbe, and Cameron Bernard Jones play the four pillars of the love quadrangle that is "The Duke", his old flame ( lady Liv ) , his new muse ( Viola "Vyman" ) and Rev, the manager of the Cotton Club clutching at straws and clasping his hands in his hopes of keeping the four together as exemplars of Ellingtonian Excellence - and also keeping the show on the road...

Sadly the live band - directed by the unassuming Ashton Moore and delightfully driven by the delicate drumming of Empirical's own Shane Forbes - are not featured as characters in their own right - I am sure that later productions in the three month run will attend to this oversight.

Despite this, the mix of moods and blues and beats and grooves from the bandstand become the main character, and for me ( as a musician! ) this is the star of the show: Ellingtonian Classics like Mood Indigo, I got it Bad, It Don't mean a thing, Black Butterfly Rocks In My Bed and In a Mellow Tone are turned inside out and taken back from the trash heap of Abersold Appropriation,and are played in a way that suits the strengths of individual artists, and balances temperaments of their characters as a whole as they play moves towards reaches its climactic reveal; at this moment the only other disappointment was that the band was not as big as, say, the English Touring Opera's for the recent run of "The Rakes Progress" : With this amount of dramatic tension in the stage, and with the audience in the palm of the band's hands the Ellington Big band, really needs to be a BIG band.

As it was, on the night Kaz Hamilton and Alexander Polack acquited themselves very well, making a myriad of moods that were both historically authentic and stylistically de jour. And the commitment to shared seat of Chris Hyde / Josh Vadivello on Double bass ( NO electric big band era please! ) brings gravitas authenticity and sensuality to the greatest american songbook in a way that only a Double Bass can. This show is all about that bass!

Having recently sat through the often turgid and salacious KAOS, a reworking of the mythology of Orpheus and Euridice, ( which was not a patch on Marcel Camus Seminal 1950's classic ) and also attended the afforementioned reworking of Igor Stravinsky's "Rake's Progress" ( often not my sense of humour, albeit markedly less turgid and salacious than Charlie Covell's Netflix Production ) I was far from convinced that , per se, " A reworking of Twelfth Night " was going to as vivacious, contemporary , and nourishing to the soul as it turned out to be. But on this occasion I was rewarded for my bravery ( And by "bravery" I mean only braving the inclement British weather ) , and I will forever regard Play On! as somewhat of a late birthday present - ( or maybe early Christmas gift? )

Ironically, whilst sipping free Prosecco and listening to a(nother) jazz function band in the reception area after the show , I had the good fortune to speak with one the trustees of the Talawa Theatre and we discussed how important it may be to not label Play On! as ( simply ) a "jazz show", because of how many people may miss out on an amazing contemporary socially and culturally relevant human experience, simply because they do not know or have not yet been sold the depth and breadth of the jazz canon.

But Play On! is "Jazz Hands" in safe hands. And I can say with confidence that Talawa Theatre have a winner on their hands; it is Black Joy. And "Black Joy" may turn out to be a better euphemism for the vibrancy we expect "Jazz" to bring to us. Congratulations on the fully immersive experience that Director Michael Buffong brought to the Belgrade Theatre tonight.

PS: As with many theatre shows, the stupidly difficult train schedule doesn't really support the 2+ hour format, but I can only say that on this occasion it was worth missing our last train to catch the "A Train" one more time...

Talawa’s Black Joy season presents:

Play On!

A new Jazz musical

Based on Shakespeare’s

“Twelfth Night”

Conceived by Sheldon Epps

Book by Cheryl L.West

Music by Duke Ellington

Produced by Talawa Theatre Company and The Belgrade Theatre

Co-produced with Birmingham Hippodrome, Bristol Old Vic, Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre and Wiltshire Creative

Artwork by Feast Creative

For the full programme, click or scan the image below:

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R.I.P Charnette Moffatt

I'd be one of the first to agree that double bass solos in Jazz are normally a waste of time.  This is because, compositionally, they are normally deployed like a safety car after a pit stop; nobody really wants that, least of all the driver.   If you absolutely MUST have your bass player take a "solo"  then:

1) keep time and / or  cadence throughout - its no less a solo than the sax or keys solo

2) If the Double bass player loses time for a moment, KEEP TIME.  remember when you forgot the form or the lyrics and we covered for you? [yes, we know].  Extend the courtesy.  Also, the bass player might not have "lost time"; he may be employing an ancient African technique called "swing" ( which is  beyond the scope of this post)

3) BASS PLAYERS: If the venue you are playing at has a bar, and the bar is open, DO NOT LOSE TIME.

4) Only the middle part of your solo is the actual solo.  The opening part is the hand over from the previous instrument, and the end part is the call to action to the band to resume playing.  The band and the audience will welcome the asidious deployment of popular themes, motifs and previously used and memorable riffs and licks in the opening and end of the solo, as it tells them which dimension you are currently in, or referring to .  They may even clap.

5) at 1'05" At https://youtu.be/Q9Ukj6INKbc?t=3900 is an example of "Bass Solo" done correctly, but, more importantly, purposefully.  Rather than a safety car after a pit stop, it assumes the aura of a reload before a final assault, or pep talk before Round 15 of a fight that really should have been in the bag by now.  Once it is finished, you can hear that the band is lifted and there is still everything to play for 6)  If you are a bass player, you can ignore points 1-4 above, and just listen to the solo at 5). Try and do this with other musicians, especially the ones you work and play with.  If any of them suggest that the solo is "not good" or "too long" or "boring", smile, leave their company at the earliest opportunity and remove them from your life.  You have important work to do , and you don't need that kind of negativity

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Freedom Road Reimagined

Freedom Road Re-Imagined

(2 April 2022, Rich Mix)

Performer: Sabina Desir: Photo by

Richard Birch

Many still cling to an incorrect assumption that the history of British people with African and Caribbean heritage is somehow secondary to that of their American counterparts.

Sabina Desir’s Rich Mix performance of Freedom Road Re-Imagined was a strong example of why it’s imprudent to lean into nationalist constructs as arbiters of entire cultures and histories. Freedom Road Re-Imagined covers important points in both the UK and US Civil Rights movements. Audio of landmark speeches was juxtaposed with, amongst others, well-known gospel, Rhythm & Blues, soul, and protest songs. Some of the most painful and visible incidents of Black History such as the lynching of Emmett Till, also feature, but there is much more besides.

Darcus Howe Supporters Outside The Old Baily, 1971@CHARLIE PHILLIPS WWW.NICKYAKEHURST.COM

We are presented with our own audio-visual Virgil in the form of Taariq Forder. Featured throughout the programme, his is an effective foil for Sabina Desir’s clarion tones, with both voices lending equal gravitas and humanity to the showcase without overshadowing any individual aspects of it.

The Performance at Rich Mix: Projection by Shaïny Vilo. Image by Richard Birch

A multi-ethnic lineup of musicians plays live throughout this immersive music performance, and on the night consisted of Winston Clifford on drums; Sabina Desir on vocals; Lascelle Gordon on percussion; Ivan Hussey  on cello; Jessica Lauren on keyboards, Music Direction and Arrangements; Tamar Osborne on woodwinds and  Jason Simpson on bass. These players all sounded truly in-the-pocket, and clearly respect each other as much as the subject matter they presented onstage for our consideration.  The production has also been joisted by the jazz saxophone of Jason Yarde 

Freedom Road on The Road: Projection:  Vanley Burke. Photo: by Richard Birch,

Richard Birch had the responsibility of capturing the lightning of the electric performance in the lens of his camera on the night. And for the duration of the performance, the projected  photography flows  alongside film footage created by Nathan Jones.

Aside from that the acoustic artistry was augmented by the featured photography of  Vanley Burke, Charlie Phillips and Shaïny Vilo, respectively.

  There’s no question of going for the music or photography and staying for the history. The art and the facts are all inextricably intertwined on this occasion. A wealth of art underpins this performance, but no medium ever outshines another – such is the level of creative balance in this show.

Despite its monochrome nature, the photography also features quotidian scenes that illustrate the feeling of lively community, inner strength, depth, and humanity extant in people that the global media has long told others to avoid at all costs, along with their places of residence– long socially and politically maligned as no-go areas. There are gardens in certain Brixton estates that rival the more famous balconies and floral displays of the Barbican Estate. But how many know this? And if they don’t know, how can they learn if the media chooses not to highlight these social parallels? These details may seem small, but they point to the humanity (and impressive gardening skills) of Black Britons, and their steadfast dedication to finding their own way forward despite any adversity wilfully put in their path.  

In one still image, smartly dressed, young Black boys huddle closely and smile for the camera. I wonder to myself whether these were smiles of innocence or of happy defiance– the latter shining through despite the social and economic strife many had either already witnessed at too young an age, or would eventually face as they matured from young Black boys to young Black men.

The Araldite that keeps this show together is Artistic Director and Producer Sabina Desir. Her sharp, dignified and protective gaze has been cast across each aspect of this work. Through careful consideration and curation, she and her team have successfully created a production that illustrates how deeply invested they are in the honest, clear and well-executed presentation of the history underpinning this multimedia art performance.

I came not to watch but to experience Freedom Road Re-Imagined. Those who care about the progress of the African Diaspora (more commonly referred to as ‘Black History’) are always hard-pressed to find objective and engaging presentations of this particular history. We dig deeply and fight hard for fair and honest depictions of Black History that serve to unite us, instead of accepting arbitrary attempts at division that shift focus to small differences such as geography and accents. The African Diaspora’s irrefutable global impact and components are as discrete as the myriad vessels that facilitated The Middle Passage. Therefore, indolent comparisons between the UK and US Civil Rights Movements, similar to those made betwixt baseball and cricket, only serve to highlight the idiocy of those relying upon them.

Onstage this evening, I did not see a show about The UK versus US Civil Rights Movements. I did see a special production possessing exceptional, creative, artistic and historical merit. Freedom Road Re-Imagined was neither mealy-mouthed nor confrontational in its approach. There was no finger pointing, shaming or blaming of other ethnicities. It was a poised presentation of historical facts, in a post-covfefe, post-pandemic paradigm.

It was the type of art and cultural work that facilitates meaningful, multi-dimensional communication, which will hopefully encourage extensive long-term dialogue on the history of Africans and Caribbeans in Britain, and their significance in global Black History overall.

I appreciate how Ms. Desir has managed to refer to key moments of Black History that speak to her personally, and present a vision on Black British History that is all her own. She needs no reliance upon Transatlantic cousins to help shape and share her chosen chapters of Black British History. Ms. Desir may be acknowledging a blueprint drafted by African Americans, but hers is a distinctly British production.

I cannot see through the eyes of others, least of all those of Freedom Road Re-Imagined’s Artistic Director and Producer Sabina Desir. Nor will it ever be possible for anyone to experience exactly how social conflict spanning several generations looks and feels for others. But being able to come along and witness someone else’s history is more than sufficient on this occasion.

Review by Malisa Ã. Elliott

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BTL JAZZ is a Successful music promotion company, created by Stephen Reece Audio Engineer with 3-decades of experience. Specialties include: Live International Tour production Studio Recording Engineer / Record Producer Facilitates workshops for music-making - Sequencing in a digital world Facilitates International audio engineering workshops with the British Council. ​ BTL JAZZ has been commissioned by London Borough Newham to deliver Free Jazz Nights within its libraries to the local community. ​ E15 JAZZ PROJECT A collaboration with Stratford Circus Arts Centre - a new and innovative performance platform for local, and International jazz artists E15 JAZZ SESSIONS ​ BTL JAZZ Promotes Jazz music and all other great-sounding genres of music ​ "Innovation Education Entertainment"

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SMALL AXE DIRECTOR STEVE McQUEEN TEAMS UP WITH MOTOWN RECORDS UK TO RELEASE THE OFFICIAL SOUNDTRACK TO THE AWARD-WINNING FIVE FILM ANTHOLOGY SERIES

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And we’re live...

PS:  The test card is running; if you want to have your artwork featured in a future show, send it via jazzreloaded.tumblr.com/submit

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BTL JAZZ is a Successful music promotion company, created by Stephen Reece Audio Engineer with 3-decades of experience.  

Specialties include: Live International Tour production Studio Recording Engineer / Record Producer Facilitates workshops for music-making - Sequencing in a digital world Facilitates International audio engineering workshops with the British Council. ​ BTL JAZZ has been commissioned by London Borough Newham to deliver Free Jazz Nights within its libraries to the local community.     ​ E15 JAZZ PROJECT A collaboration with Stratford Circus Arts Centre - a new and innovative performance platform for local, and International jazz artists E15 JAZZ SESSIONS ​ BTL JAZZ Promotes Jazz music and all other great-sounding genres of music ​ “Innovation Education Entertainment”

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...You heard it here first. #jazz #UKjazz #Podcast #BLM #pocintech #ukblacktech #diversityintech #blacktechmatters #blacktechtwitter #PitchBlack #SupportBlackBusiness #podcasts #music #podcasting

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