One Man is Enough
Dan Hoyle’s one man show “Tings Dey Happen” featured a surprising mix of elements including a political message, surprisingly accurate Nigerian accents and simplistic stage design. Hoyle had a great, avant-garde idea in writing and performing the piece, however actual execution left much to be desired.
“Tings Dey Happen” was Dan Hoyle’s one man show based on the time he spent in Nigeria as a Fulbright Scholar. Hoyle takes on multiple roles ranging from a Scottish oilman to a prostitute with the audience representing Dan on his journey. A main idea of the production is to present multiple points of view on the controversial topic of oil crisis in the country.
Simplistic stage design helped to bring focus on Hoyle’s performance. The stage was very bare; everything was painted black and Hoyle himself was dressed up in all black. Props were kept to a minimum, with only a chair and a table on the stage. Lighting was not overly fancy, which plays in with the other simplicity of the stage design. The sound effects were limited in nature, but highly effective in indicating to the audience the changes in scene or setting.
Hoyle ended up being the true star of the production. As one who had read the script before seeing the performance, I could not fathom that so many characters were to be portrayed by one person alone. Each character had depth: each had a certain point of view and his or her own personality. Upon arrival at the theater and finding out that the show was to be performed by one man alone, I was a bit shocked and worried that Hoyle would be unable to pull it off. Hoyle has amazing ideas and the written script for the show is well thought out and is effective at sending out a strong message about the crisis. It is one that will not improve itself unless other countries take action. Hoyle can really play the roles well, however, the overall on-stage performance does not deliver the same level of emotion and insight that were found in the script. The quality of acting was superb: Hoyle really played each role well and managed to portray each character as a separate character. The use of different body language, gesticulations, and manners in speech, from accent to pitch of voice, was highly effective. If one closed his or her eyes and just listened to the performance, one could be convinced that there were multiple people playing the roles. The fact that there were so many characters, however, might be one of the flaws of doing the one man show. The fact that there were so many characters with varying points of view muddled the plot line. Some audience members focused on the characters in the show more than the plot itself. There were instances where the audience had trouble trying to decipher which character was being played and their subsequent feelings on a given scenario. This was a distraction to the plot of the production and its message.
In terms of playing to the title of the show, Dan Hoyle successfully shows the audience how “Tings Dey Happen.” The euphemistic phrase proves that sometimes things, especially negative events, occur unexpectedly. It is up to those involved to either dwell on the negative or to take action and make a worthwhile difference.
Photograph by: Akim Aginsky