Kevin February 29th, 2024
Following three sold-out runs over the past three years, the highly-anticipated and heart-wrenching For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy returns to the West End! Already a modern classic, Ryan Calais Cameron's immensely impactful piece was developed over the last decade, inspired by young Black men and mental health groups. The play has gone on to ignite the spark for essential conversations to be had. Now, For Black Boys begins performances today (29 Feb 2024) at London's Garrick Theatre!
For Black Boys explores Black masculinity and life in Britain, drawing inspiration from Ntozake Shange's work, For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf. In this powerful play, six young Black men come together for group therapy, delving into themes that range from fatherhood and fashion to lost loves and culinary delights. Through music, movement, storytelling, and verse, the play steers the balance between joyful fantasy and harsh reality, as the characters clash and connect in a shared struggle for survival.
The return of For Black Boys stars Tobi King Bakare, Shakeel Haakim, Fela Lufadeju, Albert Magashi, Mohammed Mansaray, and Posi Morakinyo. The production features set and costume design by Anna Reid, lighting design by Rory Beaton, additional music and sound design by Nicola T Chang, movement direction by Theophilus O. Bailey, and musical direction by John Pfumojena.
It's a mosaic of young British black men's experience, often laugh-out-loud funny and physically exuberant, occasionally poetic, but with a recurring undertow of dread.
Evening Standard
