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Nina Simone: The High Priestess Speaks
By Ebony Joy
Directed by Jackie Taylor & Ebony Joy
At Black Ensemble Theater
4520 N. Beacon
Chicago, IL
Call 773-769-4451, tickets $35
Fridays & Saturdays at 8 PM
Sundays at 3 PM
Running time is 2 hours with intermission
Limited open run
Black Ensemble captures the essence of Nina Simone
Black Ensemble Theater’s specialty is the bio-musical featuring the lives of influential African-American arts. Their latest, Nina Simone: The High Priestess Speaks is a quality, musically rich show that captures the personality and the distinct style of the complex self-named ‘High Priestess,’ Nina Simone (born Eunice Waymon, 1933-2003). In a terrific performance by Yahdina U’Deen, who nails the unique and diversified musical styles of Simone deftly, playwright Ebony Joy employees first person narration to have Nina tell her own story. How befitting this strong, determined and fanatical artist whose fierce independence and political awareness led her to become a key spokeswoman for the Black Power movement of the 1960’s.
Filled with an 18 songs aptly played by Jimmy Tillman’s 8 member band, we get a fine sampler of the varied style of Simone’s repertoire. I had the privilege of seeing Nina Simone in concert in the late 1960’s and I still remember her shaming the audience to quiet-down before she would sing. Simone’s uniqueness came from her exaggerated singing style marked by Bachian counterpoint, use of silence, pauses, repeats, even shouts and vocal variations with her impeccable timing all geared to harvest the emotional underlining of her songs. She was an accomplished pianist, composer, arranger and lyricist equally at home with gospel, spiritual, jazz, blues, R &B with sprinkles of classical and show tunes; she also utilized African chants in some of her performances.
Playwright Ebany Joy presents a personal profile that depicts Simone as an intensely driven, fearlessly independent focused performer. With an amazing rich voice, Yahdina U’Deen evokes Simone’s tone with blues numbers like “For Myself,” “Feeling Good,” “Tell Me More and More and Then Some” and “Sugar in My Bowl” (my personal favorite). The gospel songs, “I’ll Fly Away,” “Be My Husband” and “Sinnerman” were toe-tapping treats. U’Deen really nailed Simone’s first hit, “I Love You Porgy” with a tenderness that reached into by heart.
Once Simone realized her ‘calling’ was to be apart of the Black Movement of empowerment of the 1960’s, she penned “Mississippi Goddam,” a toe-tapping, up-tempo R & B political song designed as a wake up call. Her “ Young Gifted and Black” was a tribute to Lorraine Hansberry (author of Raisin in the Sun). Several songs were underscored with African styled and modern dances led by Ruben D. Echoles and a small ensemble. Too bad there wasn’t more of these delightful dances.
Jackie Taylor and Ebony Joy give us a glimpse into the magnificent aura Nina Simone possessed that put a spell on audiences. Nina Simone: The High Priestess Speaks is an immensely entertaining show filled with vintage Simone songs.
Recommended
Tom Williams
Tom99@chicagocritic.com for comments
Talk Theatre in Chicago Podcast
Date Reviewed February 19, 2006
Jeff Recommended
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