the papers deserve better – Inside Croydon

KEN TOWL returns to Fairfield Halls and is left wondering where Croydon’s theatre-goers have gone

Outstanding performance: Kareem Perkins-Brown in Bougie Lanre’s bakery. Picture: Bettina Adela

Back to Fairfield Halls for a second production at the Talawa Theater over four days. They barely cast Anastasia Osei-Kuffour Steps of Love to bed, then they begin their run (until Saturday, June 15) of a “First On Tour” double bill of Bougie Lanre’s bakery and Love in gravitational waves.

Somewhere along the line, something goes seriously wrong at Talawa, the black theater company that moved to make its home in Croydon in 2019, shortly after Fairfield Halls reopened following its controversial refurbishment. Last night, as with Steps of Love on weekends, almost all the seats in the audience were empty.

Talawa is known for presenting theater at the highest standards and providing a space for talented young writers and actors to showcase their craft to… well, lately, almost no one. Someone, somewhere needs to get their act together and start marketing this gem in the heart of Fairfield halls.

Here’s what about 150 people missed last night:

In the Bougie Lanre’s bakery, Kareem Parkins-Brown plays a version of himself and a string of other characters in a one-man show that hits hard and low. This dichotomy is made clear from the outset: “And if I’m talking about paradise, I’m talking about chicken grease…”, and so begins a philosophical and comical treatise on food and people through the lens of a chef and his colleagues.

In love with the stars: Love in gravitational waves at the Talawa Theater presents Kamilah Storey and Anyebe Godwin. Picture: Bettina Adela

The show is a series of interconnected monologues, some raw, some thoughtful, all interesting. In one of the best, Parkins-Brown soliloquizes about vanilla, the second most expensive food product after saffron, so valuable that its farmers sleep with guns on their knees to protect their crops, while being “the more disappointing ice cream flavor. “.

His paan at the blue roulade is very blasphemous and very funny, but I won’t say it here because you should go and hear it from the man himself. Not all the humor lands as hard as it should, but with an audience of only 18 people, he created what atmosphere he could. Parkins-Brown is naturally funny and has a playful way with words that deserves a much larger audience.

Like last week Steps of love, love in gravitational waves it’s a piece about modern dating and like last week’s Steps of love, love in gravitational waves is provided by two actors playing more than one role. You thought our marketing was bad? Check out our schedule!

Are we missing something?: The sparse audience at last night’s show at the Talawa Theatre

The premise, established by Kamilah Storey’s character Bronwyn, is that the world will be a better place if we get out of our bubbles and engage with people who think differently, so instead of trying to fit in with people who are compatible, she try to do her part for world peace, not meeting a highly educated middle-class person like her, she opts for ex-libertarian misogynist Ishmael (who turns out to be quite likeable and complex and ably played by Anyebe Godwin).

They strike up an unlikely friendship and each encounter reveals a little more about them and helps explain their behavior.

The supporting characters are less interesting, one seems to be just a device to advance the plot and the other, the stupid singer in love, seems to have no value. Bad singing is funny the first time, less so the third.

That said, the dialogue in most of the scenes, which play out a battle of the sexes and explore our differences and similarities, our acts of goodness and badness, elevate this performance and force us to confront our own values ​​and certainties. While the themes are deep, the dialogue is quick and easy on the ear, a testament to the fact that the words are delivered by award-winning hip-hop artist and beatboxer… Testament.

The tragedy is that so few people were there to experience it.

Let’s change that. These writers and these actors deserve to be seen and heard.

Tickets are available here: https://www.fairfield.co.uk/events/talawa-firsts-on-tour-2024

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