Apphia Campbell brought her one woman show to the Greenwich Theatre and thrilled her audience with her powerful performance.
Black is the Color is a one woman show based on the life of Nina Simone where Apphia Campbell plays the role of Mena Bordeaux a singer trying to come to terms with the death of her father and reflecting on her career and the role her father played. It deals with a number of topics that have shaped her career including racism, domestic violence, rape, her relationship with her dad, love found and lost and the Civil Rights movement. Mena is a troubled woman trying to kick her cigarette and alcohol addictions. The performance starkly highlighted the emotional impact of all these troubles.
The show includes a number of songs made famous by Nina Simone. Apphia Campbell has a fantastic soulful singing voice which was at times accompanied by a backing track but often unaccompanied which enabled her to convey the emotion of her character.
My wife and I had already seen Apphia Campbell’s ‘Woke’ in Greenwich and felt compelled to return to see this production and its quality was just as high. Performing and acting solo for an hour cannot be at all easy but was made to look it. Apphia has such a good voice that she could, with a few breaks, become a renowned singer, similarly she is such a good actress that she could pursue an acting career. By combining the two she is in a league of her own. This was first class entertainment that I found very moving and thought provoking. Anyone who enjoys theatre and / or music should be thrilled by this performance.
Johns London Music Reviews 