We take a look at what is being said about Joy Nesbitt’s drama, directed by Tatenda Shamiso, running until the 7th November.
WhatsOnStage: “Blood of My Blood isn’t perfect; it overcomplicates Tallulah’s motivation and over-explains Ginnie’s ultimate decision-making. Nevertheless, it is refreshingly unwilling ever to simplify. These people, spanning history, are brought to life in this production just as effectively as Tallulah communes with her ancestors. It’s a bold, moving play of extraordinary impact.”
The Guardian: “Nesbitt’s gripping writing is accompanied by some excellent acting. Vaill’s doubling is demanding and navigated spectacularly. Adékọluẹ́jọ is excellent as Ginnie, full of quiet strength. Complicated plotting brings multiple pregnancies and family trees. There is an unconvincing scene in which James and Nora spend New Year’s Eve with Talulah, and a Black American character pops up briefly to deliver a clunky treatise on historical legacies. But these contrivances are forgivable in a play that treats its subject matter with such innovation. It grips, moves and raises hairs.”
Camden New Journal: “It is beautifully acted, with Karene Peter completing the cast as Ginnie’s feisty friend Bertha.”
A Young(ish) Perspective: “Despite sometimes awkward dialogue, this play strikes the delicate balance between supernatural and realism, creating an incredibly watchable piece of theatre that could easily be an hour longer.”
London Theatre.co.uk: “Framed by incantations from “Hoodoo” or “Conjure” rituals, some of the supernatural elements are a touch contrived, but the power of the work shines through. It will be interesting to see what Nesbitt does next.”
All That Dazzles: “Overall, Blood of My Blood is a compelling, thought-provoking, enjoyable piece of theatre that manages to tackle some very difficult subjects without becoming overwhelmingly heavy.”
Time Out: “Blood of My Blood is a worthy winner of the Concord Theatricals Unpublished Playwrights Award. It’s a thoughtful, touching, intelligent, funny and disarmingly gentle drama with strong roles for Black actresses. And a memorable vision of a family tree, festooned with blossoms on its multiple living branches, but with blood at its roots.”
British Theatre Guide: “It’s a believable if improbable storyline that has an underpowered early section and awkward magical appearances, but it is performed by a fine cast and is incredibly important in addressing the legacy of slavery still ignored.”
The Standard: “It’s the actors who really make it work. The chameleonic Adékọluẹ́jọ́ is as convincing and present as ever. Vaill, himself a winner of a 2022 Standard award for his performance in Oklahoma!, exudes barely-contained volatility. Campbell, Peter and Morrish give fine, succinct characterisations. As culinary anthropologist Niecey might say, there’s plenty of food for thought here, and lots to get your teeth into.”
West End Best Friend: “Blood of My Blood remains a thoughtful and atmospheric piece of theatre. Its strongest achievement lies in the way it makes history tangible: not simply as something that happened before, but as something embedded within places, relationships and the people who inherit them. When the production finds the balance between its humour, its darker material and its supernatural world, it becomes a quietly compelling examination of what it means to live alongside the past.”
Everything Theatre: “Nesbitt’s Royal Court debut ultimately asks a far more intimate question than simply who our ancestors were: what of them continues to live within us? The unsettling possibility running beneath it is that the past does not need to be consciously remembered in order to remain psychologically present. Sometimes we go searching for our history only to discover that, in some form, we have been carrying it all along.”
To book tickets visit: https://royalcourttheatre.com/events/blood-of-my-blood/