Things aren't always what they seem

The other day, we went to see the play “Seize The Day” by Kwame Kwei-Armah, at the Tricycle Theatre in north London. The play, one of a trilogy evoking the black experience in the UK, used the idea of a black candidate running for the office of Mayor of London to explore the contradictions facing black people, especially black youth, trying to find space in a generally unsympathetic environment.
The protagonist, Jeremy Charles, is a black TV presenter, who, while filming for an ad on a street corner, is caught on camera breaking up a potential mugging involving a gang of black youths. And of course, Charles was subsequently hailed as a hero, which afforded opportunists in the black community a pretext to conscript him as a candidate in an upcoming mayoral election. But Charles, like the rest of us, is weighed down by his own ambiguities. Trapped in a loveless, childless marriage to a white woman, he is two-timing with a younger black one. For his apparent crime, Lavelle, a highly intelligent youth and leader of the gang, is put on probation on the proviso that he attends mentoring sessions at Jeremy’s home. Those who would recruit Jeremy Charles have their own skeletons rattling away in the background, which ultimately exposed their true purpose in drafting him. Thus, everything is not always as it seems, explaining the trilogy’s tag of “Not Black & White.”
The play, directed by the playwright, is finely balanced between the main characters, all of whom bring a leavening touch of humour to the serious matters under interrogation. The set is minimalist, but that in no way detracts from the gripping sense of expectation as the scenes change and the play drives on. This is a play that has something for everyone, regardless of where on the racial divide you sit. It is not unlikely that it will come to a theatre near you, as the Tricycle has proved a remarkable springboard from which numerous productions have stormed the West End and beyond. The playwright, of Afro-Caribbean descent, has also made his mark not only across the UK, but also on the other side of the Atlantic as well. So look out for this un-missable theatrical event, wherever you are.

Tell Fren Tru