The undisputed stars of Is Dat U Yh?, the new production at Brixton House, are the cast. The four young women – Adeola Yemitan, Antonia Layiwola, Rachael Ridley and Zakiyyah Deen – produce an astonishing performance as they recall and revisit the events and places of their schooldays in south London – “a time when laughter was free and nonsense was all we knew”.
The tumbling chaos and anarchy of their world masks a truly extraordinary level of discipline and co-ordination as they deliver lines at breakneck speed alongside the sound track and dance moves of their teenage years. We’re taken to Camberwell Green, Ruskin Park, Elephant and Castle and the back seats of numerous buses which are the scenes of their “nonsense”. Their dramatic timing and athleticism recreate the authentic and therefore occasionally baffling world of young black girls growing up in the city.
Writer and director dkfash deserves enormous praise for bringing this world to exuberant life. She has given the actors the space and freedom to bring their own experiences to the characters, so they truly inhabit them. Unsurprisingly, they develop an immediate rapport with the audience – swept along with the sheer energy of the performance – whose ready participation creates a shared, and enjoyably noisy, experience.
The play makes some serious points about growing up as a young black girl. But above all it is joyous “There’s no anger in this play; love and raw passion only”
Is Dat U Yh? Runs until 27 April in Brixton House,385 Coldharbour Lane, SW9 8GL. Tickets £16 – £22. For further information go to www.brixtonhouse.co.uk
