A REVIEW OF THE STAGE PLAY: THE NEXT TURN.
A REVIEW OF THE STAGE PLAY: THE NEXT TURN.
October 16th, 2022 was a popular day in history as a long list of artistic events was carried out in Jos, Nigeria. One of such events was the play staged by the MARKiE Colossus Studio titled: “The next turn.”
The publicity was quite massive, and Punchlyne Entertainment was sure to keep the general public updated towards this great event. The event was held at the famous Crest hotels and gardens; because of its spacious hall and its possession of a comfortable stage platform.
A grand opening of a poetry rendition was given by Decipher Moore the anchor, as a way of welcoming the audience who were full of expectations. It then proceeded to a drum beating performance that lasted five minutes.
Through these all; one could see the eagerness and desperation on the audience’s faces to see what MARKiE Colossus was up to this time.
The event was taken to another dimension with scintillating performances by Doug Kazé, Eric Limanii, and Sosy Imafidon; these performances set the stage rolling for the play to possess optimal expression.
The play started in earnest with the all the actors making their way to the stage; dressed in beautiful African fabric, singing and humming afro-centric songs. Another distinct occurrence was the fact that the actors had held all the props needed for the success of the play, which as they sang and danced, placed the props where appropriate. Furthermore, the actors had made a wall of bodies at one side of the stage to allow them to take turns changing into the costume for the play.
THE NEXT TURN was a beautiful rendition, with a dialogue that would have been rated PG 18. It was a captivating story of decision, relationship, leadership failures, irresponsibility, marriage, divorce, anger, love, STDs and STIs, betrayal, and loss.
It was a tragi-comedic musicale that had the audience laughing, sighing, and sometimes making comments at intervals. The expressions on the audience’s faces were priceless. There were also vendors with a range of edible supplies to keep the spirit alive during the rendition.
Generally, it was a time well spent. However, one would not have had such tremendous events done without pointing out some downsides.
Firstly, the event which was slated for 2pm started at 3:15pm, with an eighteen minutes silence between the welcome address and the drum-beating rendition. The sound had gone off at several intervals, and both performers, actors, and the audience had to share in that disappointment.
Judging from the general outlook of the play, the songs were pretty appropriate, howbeit, the audience could not make out the wordings because the sound was way above the lyrics shouted by the actors. One would have suggested that a projector be used to display the lyrics to all the songs sung so as to enable the audience to follow excellently.
Again, the hall used was too large for the audience that was present, which was part of the reason for the not-so-good sound. The smaller hall that was right next to the one used would have been a perfect choice for staging the play; as it would have given a more personalized and intimate feel to the play.
The event came to a close with an emotional display of affection by Mark Musa and his grandma. The beautiful elderly woman was sure proud of her grandson, and could not wait to hug him when they had taken the last bow after the play was done.
Mark Musa, who had produced and directed this play, was thankful to all who had made the event a success. He had a long list to read from, and it was such an intense moment for him and all who were present.
At the end of the event; everyone was sharing its highlight, munching on something edible, and networking. Yet, one question remained in the minds of all: what next should be expected of this prolific writer, storyteller, producer, and director?
Just maybe, the answer might be found at ‘THE NEXT TURN’!!!
MARKiE Colossus Studios
