Play On! at the Lyric Hammersmith

Since premiering at the Belgrade Theatre in Coventry last September, Talawa’s production of jukebox musical Play On! has received deserved acclaim at each stop on its UK tour before arriving at its final destination of Lyric Hammersmith.

As the centrepiece of the company’s “Black Joy” season, many audience members are possibly more familiar with the play the musical riffs on, Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, than the songs of black American jazz pianist and composer Edward “Duke” Ellington, which the musical incorporates. Yet, if the feverish hubbub post-curtain call tonight is an indicator of future reactions to this electric revival, audiences will be desperate to get, at the very least, a recording of the performance, if not a ticket.

Originally performed in America in the late 1990s, the show is set in 1940s Harlem. Viola (Tsemaye Bob-Egbe) arrives at the Cotton Club to seek her uncle Jester’s (Llewellyn Jamal) help in fulfilling her ambitions to be a successful songwriter. But, as Viola is unlikely to achieve success in that male-dominated field, Jester suggests she disguise herself as a man, Vy-man. From there, she becomes embroiled in a complex love triangle with the club’s world-famous songwriter The Duke (Earl Gregory) and its lead singer Lady Liv (Koko Alexandra).

The comic intrigue does not end there, though, as one of the sub-plots is the persuasion of staid club manager Rev (Cameron Bernard Jones) by Jester, Sweets (Liford Shillingford) and Miss Mary (Tanya Edwards) to learn the art of swing to woo the completely uninterested Lady Liv.

Buffong’s deft direction and the actors’ playful performances mean there is no shortage of laughs for the audience to enjoy from these scenarios, but the overriding strengths of the show are the songs, music and choreography.   

The bulk of the musical highlights feature in the show’s first act and include Gregory’s swooning solo performance of I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart, Alexandra’s beautifully bristling Mood Indigo and the gorgeously arranged four-performer take on Solitude.

Yes, the second act is notably thin on a narrative front, but Jamal and Shillingford’s gritty duet of Rocks in My Bed alone makes up for that shortcoming.

This production is so strong that, really, it should play on and on. The fact it is currently scheduled to end this month, therefore, means audiences really must hurry to catch what must surely be an early contender for Best Musical Revival at this year’s Olivier Awards.

Francis Nash
Photos: Ciara Hillyer Production

Play On! is at the Lyric Hammersmith from 28^th January until 22^nd February 2025. For further information or to book visit the theatre’s website here.

Watch the trailer for Play On! at the Lyric Hammersmith here: