“In the Red and Brown Water” was a story of Oya, a talented
runner with a difficult life. After she is
offered a scholarship she declines it to stay home and take care of her sick mother
who dies shortly after. She is denied a scholarship after and falls in love
with a man who cheats on her and leaves for war. She begins a relationship with
Ogun but seems unsatisfied with it. With her life falling apart and everyone
she loves gone or with someone else she desperately wants a child but cannot
have one. In the end, her love Shango gets another girl pregnant and it's enough
to finally push her over the edge and lose her sanity.
What struck me as the most important thing for the main
character was that Oya achieved her dreams and in the end she failed at all of
them. She wanted to run track and care for her loved ones but has to turn down
her scholarship to care for her mother and both of those dreams die. In her
attempt to care for a relationship with Shango he is unfaithful and she unhappily
stays with Ogun.
What most compelled me about the performance was the acting
and dancing. The acting was in my opinion excellent. The actors really threw
themselves into their characters and played convincing roles. They were both humorous
and dramatic when needed. The tribal dancing was new to me so it also interested me
a lot. The mature language discouraged me slightly though. I wasn’t expecting
it and am not a fan of it.
My critiques of the performance would have to be that the
setting was somewhat unclear at first. The tribal dancing and outfits made it kind
of seem like Africa. Next, they were saying they were in the projects, which I always
assumed to be in Cities, but by the end I was able to figure out they were in
the bayou. Again, another critique would be the langue but that is just a
personal opinion of mine and it did add somewhat to the drama.
It was not my first live performance. What I found different
about it was that it was the first live performance I have ever seen where the
background never changed. I didn’t really know what to expect going into it so I
can’t really say if it met my expectations or not. Compared to other performances
I have seen though I did think it was a good show.
