On Tuesday we were at the Royal Theatre in Northampton to see 'Once Upon A Time In Sokoto' - a new play by Inua Ellams. Directed by Roy Alexander Weise for Fuel in association with Touring Together (a collective that includes Royal & Derngate Northampton), 'Once Upon A Time In Sokoto' explores the pre-colonial history of Nigeria, through 24 scenes set from 1865 to 1903 in the Sokoto Caliphate in West Africa. It's a fascinating, entertaining and moving production using a mixture of storytelling and drama with four actors playing multiple parts - and breaking the fourth wall to involve the audience in their story. This is a family saga spanning three generations as well as a political, economic and military history lesson - very effectively knitting personal stories with macro historical events. Amelia Jane Hankin's set provides an impressive backdrop but this is an intimate narrative that would also work well in an empty classroom. The audience is drawn into the storytelling and the four actors (Adeola Yemitan, Antonia Layiwola, Bayo Gbadamosi and Will Atiomo) are excellent. It's a fast-paced, thoughtful, eye-opening history.
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