Given the title there’s a surprising amount of joy in Ryan Calais Cameron’s play. It’s a mosaic of young British black men’s experience, often laugh-out-loud funny and physically exuberant, occasionally poetic, but with a recurring undertow of dread.
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...Cameron’s secret weapon – and that of his excellent cast – is humour. If ‘For Black Boys…’ can veer towards earnest cliché, there’s always a wickedly funny joke to undercut the seriousness, and Cameron has a wonderful ear for the merciless pisstaking patter of a group of lads.
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This tender, poignant and vitally populist show’s cumulative impact is potentially profound. It has the power to make you want to treat your fellow human beings, regardless of their skin tone, with greater kindness and respect.
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But the other thing about this production that has not changed is its intention. That affirmation is no less necessary than it was last year: Black boys, you are beautiful, you are valuable – and you matter. How wonderful that more people get to receive this message.
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Maybe because of being (presumably) written in lockdown, it’s bursting with energy. The individuals are excellent – Lawrence’s heartbreaking reveal of Midnight’s childhood trauma is a standout – but the collective is what’s powerful, here.
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Slowly but surely, society is waking up to the mental health and suicide crisis affecting young males. And as Ryan Calais Cameron's lively and meaningful new show makes clear, young black men are at particular risk due to the discrimination they face in a white-run society.
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