For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When the Hue Gets Too Heavy
This review is from 2023. ‘For Black Boys…’ returns for 2024 with a new cast. To say that ‘For Black Boys...’ is the kind of show you don't normally see on the West End is a massive understatement. It’s a sleeper hit that started out at tiny fringe powerhouse the New Diorama, then transferred to the Royal Court before making it to Theatreland, powered by a passionate fanbase rather than rave reviews. All of its cast and most of its creative team are Black men, talking about their experiences of growing up in a world that often sidelines and stereotypes them in a style that's non-linear, raw, spontaneous, and massively fun to watch.Its creator Ryan Calais Cameron researched the play by running open-ended therapy-style sessions for Black men, ones that sprawled out over hours as they broached hard-to-talk-about subjects like mental health, masculinity, and love. Some of that same soul-baring earnestness finds its way into the finished play, which is structured around dream-like dialogues between the six cast members. ‘I'm already learning new ways to hate me’ says one boy, after getting ignored while playing kiss chase. This opening scene explores how school offers unwanted lessons first in other kids' prejudice, then, later, in the grinding historical traumas of slavery. The same rhythm patterns throughout the play, with big themes getting introduced and then broken down through the fragmented experiences of the cast.But it never quite feels predictable, because Calais Camero