‘Black is the Color of my Voice’ was an absolute showstopper! It was a one-woman show performed by Florence Odumosu based on the story of Nina Simone’s life and incorporating a selection of her songs. It told Nina Simone’s life from when she was a child training to be the first ever Black classical pianist all the way through to her involvement with the Civil Rights Movement, especially following the 1963 Baptist Church bombing in Alabama and Martin Luther King’s assassination in 1968.
Florence Odumosu’s performance was outstanding. She was captivating and engaging throughout the show, making good use of her body and the different levels available to her on stage to capture the essence of Nina Simone at different stages of her life as well as to slip into other roles, such as that of Nina Simone’s mother. Despite this, what really made Florence Odumosu’s performance so outstanding was her voice. I love Nina Simone’s music myself so I was very excited to be seeing ‘Black in the Color of my Voice’ but, before going in, I was a bit worried that the songs would be a bit of a let down because I already had a very clear idea in my head of what they should sound like. However, I shouldn’t have worried because Florence Odumosu’s voice held all the depth necessary to give spine-tingling renditions of some of Nina Simone’s most iconic songs, as well as some that I had never heard before (but that I will definitely be listening to again!)
‘Black is the Color of my Voice’ was performed at the Crucible Theatre which can be a difficult venue to perform in because it is atypical in the sense that the audience is seated on three sides of the stage so actors have nowhere to hide. Florence Odumosu took this challenge in her stride and, throughout the performance, I noticed that she was constantly trying to draw different areas of the audience into the story so that everyone was engaged with the show. I also thought that the set design, which was very simple as the whole story is told to the audience from a single room, worked very well. Florence Odumosu used it to transport the audience from one scene in Nina Simone’s life to another and its simplicity allowed the audience to really focus in on the actual performance which made it more impactful and emotive.
Overall, I absolutely loved ‘Black is the Color of my Voice’ and I would recommend everyone to go and see it: you don’t have to love Nina Simone’s music to love this show! Unfortunately, tonight’s performance at the Crucible is sold out, however it is touring around the UK over the next few months, so there are still plenty of chances to see this amazing show!
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
