SINGING THE BLUES

REVIEWED BY DIANE DE BEER

BLUES IN THE NIGHT

Presented by Joburg’s Market Theatre in partnership with Hattiloo Theatre from Memphis Tennessee

CAST: Chastity Alliston, Zan Tarria Edwards, Jamille Hunter and Grant Kee

DATES: Until February 22 at Joburg’s Market Theatre

This Tony-nominated musical states that it celebrates blues, jazz and gospel classics, and their connection is with love, resilience and especially the emotional lives of Black women.

It is described as a scorcher in which the soul of the blues wails out full and strong through hot and torchy numbers. It also weaves the sweet, sexy, and sorrowful stories of three women entangled with a lying, cheating man.

For the record, songs by legends such as Bessie Smith, Duke Ellington, Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen, Alberta Hunter, Jimmy Cox, Ida Cox, and more feature but probably what surprised me more than anything was how little I knew of any of the music performed.

It’s as if we (or perhaps that’s simply the shows I saw) focused on only a few familiar numbers like the title song as so much of the music was unfamiliar to me. But, instead of this being a negative, I found that exciting.

The performers are perfect for this musical challenge. The powerhouse Edwards, with a voice that seems to go on forever, is masterfully complemented by the sweet-toned Hunter and the smoky Alliston, while the solo male singer Kee, carrying the burden for the rest of his absent gender, uses his voice and jaunty presence to do the talking.

Not only was I witnessing an unfamiliar cast, it was also the music that overwhelmed me from start to finish. The first half felt a bit like a journey through the world of blues music, while the second half upped the rhythm as well as the vocals, which gave the audience a nudge to swing with the party.

This is music that was created to illustrate the pain of oppressive times, and like here, music was usually the platform where artists could express themselves. This show was picked specifically for Black History Month, which marks its 100th year in 2026.

The centenary calls for “an honest reflection on memory, healing, culture, as well as the condition and position of Black bodies in a still increasingly divided world.”

This milestone further coincides with The Market Theatre’s 50th anniversary, a powerful connection that presents a rich opportunity for representation and amplification of unheard voices.  It is directed and choreographed by Emma Crystal, with musical direction by Dr. Ashley K. Davis.

And while on relevant dates, this is also the 70th anniversary of the historic August 9,1956 Women’s March, focusing the spotlight even more sharply on that especially neglected group, Black women.

Founder and CEO of Hattiloo Theatre, Ekundayo Bandele, and Artistic Director of The Market Theatre Foundation, Greg Homann, recognised and embraced the common histories between the two theatres in staging socially engaged works that prick at their respective nations’ collective conscience.

“From South Africa to the US, generations of oppressed people have sung their way up against discrimination, racism, subjugation and dispossession as an unstoppable wave. This year as we proudly present Blues in the Night for its African premiere, we also celebrate music’s ability to remind us of our shared humanity despite our fractured times,” shares Homann.

They aim to keep this exchange going – both to the advantage of performers and audiences.

*Playing alongside also at the Market is our own musical theatre classic Marabi, which will be reviewed later this week.