Tag Archives: Apphia Campbell

Black is the Color of my Voice
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The Vaults

Color of my Voice

Black is the Color of my Voice

The Vaults

Reviewed – 28th June 2019

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“Campbell has created something full of emotion, with engaging dialogue and beautifully executed vocals”

 

Nina Simone was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon on 21st February 1933, in Tryon, North Carolina. She was, and still is, widely regarded as one of the most influential recording artists of the 20th century. But what was life like for her? Apphia Campbell has written and also performs in Black is the Color of My Voice, a piece inspired by the life of celebrated performer, Nina Simone.

Campbell, as Simone, is alone in the performance space, delivering her lines to a photograph of her late father, who it is clear she has deep affections for. She very much involves and engages the audience, addressing lines to us, as well as the photograph. Throughout the piece, we are taken on a journey through Simone’s life, from her childhood discovering a love of playing the piano, to her romantic relationships, abuse endured and her commitment to the American Civil Rights Movement. Although the piece is set in one room, furnished with a bed, a desk and chairs, it’s easy to imagine the other various locations spoken about, as a result of the descriptive dialogue and enchanting storytelling.

The emotion and passion shown throughout is inspiring to say the least. You can’t help but be drawn in to each and every experience of the singer that is shared on stage. There are light moments, including amusing impressions of Simone’s mother when she learned of her daughter’s interest in jazz, β€œthe devil’s music”. The darker moments, including a recollection of Simone’s abusive marriage, are heartbreaking and a great deal of empathy is created.

Lighting (Clancy Flynn) and sound (Tom Lishman) design during the section of the piece highlighting Simone’s horror over events surrounding the American Civil Rights Movement is hugely effective. Recordings of real news segments, the aftermath of horrific events and speeches are played, as well as lights flashing as she changes T.V channels. These elements, combined with Campbell’s acting abilities, ensure a highly dramatic and tense section of the piece.

You don’t necessarily need to be a fan of Nina Simone to be absorbed in this show. Apphia Campbell has created something full of emotion, with engaging dialogue and beautifully executed vocals in songs interwoven throughout. Direction by Arran Hawkins and Nate Jacobs has ensured the space is used well and the energy never falters. It’s clear why Campbell’s show has enjoyed worldwide success in recent years.

 

Reviewed by Emily K Neal

Photography by Geraint Lewis

 


Black is the Color of my Voice

The Vaults until 13th July

 

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:
Ares | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | March 2019
Check In/Check Out | β˜…β˜…β˜… | March 2019
Donal The Numb | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | March 2019
Essex Girl | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | March 2019
Feed | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | March 2019
How Eva Von Schnippisch Won WWII | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | March 2019
The Talented Mr Ripley | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | March 2019
Vulvarine | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | March 2019
Me and my Whale | β˜…β˜…β˜… | June 2019
Bare: A Pop Opera | β˜…β˜…β˜… | June 2019

 

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Woke
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Battersea Arts Centre

Woke

Woke

Battersea Arts Centre

Reviewed – 12th June 2019

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“Campbell is a skilled performer, switching effortlessly between naΓ―ve teenager and experienced activist”

 

Nowadays, being woke is the standard. Yet it is also a given: of course we will be aware of certain issues, and naturally we will lend our voices to the collective. But how do we get there? In this powerful one woman show, Apphia Campbell explains how and why we become activists.

Driven by her love for the song β€˜Saint Louis Blues’, Ambrosia is going to college in the city on a voice scholarship. It’s August 2014, just weeks after eighteen-year-old Michael Brown was killed by a white police officer. Ambrosia has been raised to respect the law; when the law doesn’t respect her, it comes as unwelcome shock – one that triggers action. Meanwhile, in 1970s New York, JoAnne Chesimard is experiencing a revelation of her own. Growing up, she was called many things. But now people call her African, an African queen. Inspired, she adopts a new name, Assata, and devotes her life to the Black Panthers. The ensuing hour shows how these two radically different women ended up on the same path, and how they choose to tread.

This is a well-crafted show, compelling and often moving. Accompanied onstage by only a microphone and minimal set, Campbell lets her words speak for themselves. The writing is full of clever details that make her characters engaging to watch; the contrast between the two is used to great effect. Ambrosia’s transformation from ignorant bystander to ardent activist is the perfect method of guiding the audience through Assata’s story and its significance. The mounting sense of disgust at the way both women are treated serves to highlight Campbell’s point: the fight has not been won. Assata and Ambrosia were born fifty years apart, yet they struggle for the same thing.

Campbell is a skilled performer, switching effortlessly between naΓ―ve teenager and experienced activist. Her voice is rich and soulful; the songs she performs come straight from the heart of the story as naturally as if they were spontaneous. Of the two performances, Assata feels more earnest and driven. Whilst Ambrosia has great character development, she does feel a little underwritten. Her thoughts and feelings whilst in hiding are explored only fleetingly. The conflict between pleasing her parents and expressing her political freedoms is a really interesting one – again it is quickly bypassed. It leaves a sense of something unfinished, of a story with more questions than answers.

Woke doesn’t quite live up to its potential, but that doesn’t diminish its power. Campbell shows that activists come from all walks of life. Some are born woke, some achieve wokeness – but, however we get there, every voice counts.

 

Reviewed by Harriet Corke

Photography by Mihaela Bodlovic

 


Woke

Battersea Arts Centre until 22nd June

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:
How to Survive a Post-Truth Apocalypse | β˜…β˜…β˜… | May 2018
Rendezvous in Bratislava | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | November 2018
Dressed | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | February 2019
Frankenstein: How To Make A Monster | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | March 2019
Status | β˜…β˜…β˜…Β½ | April 2019

 

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