Solo Actor Shines In an Unexpected Production
There are some plays that amuse with light entertainment and others that indulge the senses in the feasts of scenery and costumes that only high-end Broadway budgets can afford. “Tings Dey Happen” is neither.
Just as controversial in aesthetics as it is in content, this avant-garde production takes stage at the Culture Project Theatre, aptly situated in the chic SoHo neighborhood. An austere black stage stars the play’s writer and solo actor extraordinaire, Dan Hoyle. Somewhat taken aback, the audience watches the young, white Hoyle transform into black militants, oil workers, and prostitutes as the audience is taken across the conflict torn Niger Delta.
At the heart of this play is the real tragedy of a broken country ravaged by foreign exploitation, a corrupt government and ethnic rivalry. Politically saturated and illuminating, “Tings Dey Happen” combines the rawness of a documentary with the brutal honesty of journalism. It resonates with any worldly citizen that cares about the human’s plight.
“Tings Dey Happen” is fresh, unapologetic and daring in its acerbic language. It makes no effort at objectivity, but is fair in telling a neglected story. Characters like the desperate arms dealer who dreams of a college education are often difficult to judge, as they are as complex as Nigerian politics. Well-timed comic relief evenly interspersed throughout the ninety-minute performance, often in the form of wry comments by the stage manager, lightens the otherwise heavy mood of the play.
While Hoyle probably deserves more praise for holding up a country’s tragedy than he does for his skillful performance, his acting easily outshines the story. In his impeccable delivery, he unintentionally overshadows the story he brings to life as the audience loses his words in his fluid, agile movements. Although the intensity of the play is still impossible to miss, the plot’s clarity is obscured in the pidgin English of Hoyle’s characters. Even if the choice of language was intended to convey an authenticity rather than the minute details of the play, the overall impact was lost. However, character changes are fairly obvious as they are often marked by an abrupt interruption of the play’s momentum.
A master soloist like Dan Hoyle cannot even salvage the play from the burden of too many characters, although he succeeds in giving each character distinct voices, gestures and grimaces. Perhaps, after the success of his previous solo performances in the Circumnavigator and Florida 2004: The Big Bummer, Doyle decided unwisely to take on a more challenging role or roles, making his performance seem at times like a winning audition rather than a winning play. Still, Hoyle is believable just as he is likable.
With its fragments of Nigerian life, “Tings Dey Happen” leaves the audience with a heavy-heart and a sense of urgency that for many often fades in the coming days or weeks. Unsettling realizations are sadly blown away like dust in the African wind.